Remembering What’s True When Doubt Speaks Quietly
A few weeks ago, I was out to dinner with my son and his family. It was one of those perfect evenings, good conversation, laughter, and kindness from the people working there. Nothing unusual. Nothing negative. Just a pleasant night together.
Then suddenly, my three-year-old granddaughter looked around and announced loudly,
“We don’t belong here. We need to leave.”
Everyone at the table
paused.
We asked her why she felt that way. Without hesitation, she said very confidently,
“They don’t like us.”
What struck me was that
there was absolutely no evidence of that. No unkind words. No looks. Nothing
had happened that would make anyone feel unwelcome. But once that thought
entered her mind, it felt completely true to her, and it changed how she felt
about being there.
I
couldn’t stop thinking about that moment, because I realized how familiar that
experience can be.
Satan
works the same way with us.
He
doesn’t usually show up loudly or dramatically. Instead, he plants quiet
thoughts that sound believable:
·
You
don’t really belong here.
·
You’re
not good enough to be here.
·
Everyone
else has it together, but you don’t.
Once
we believe those thoughts, they can affect how we show up, how confident we
feel, how willing we are to participate, and how connected we feel to each
other and to the Spirit.
One
of his most effective tactics is convincing us that we are somehow on the
outside looking in.
The
gospel teaches something very different.
The
Lord reminds us in Doctrine & Covenants 18:10 that “the worth of souls is
great in the sight of God” Not the worth
of perfect souls. Not the worth of people who never struggle or doubt.
Just souls.
That
includes each one of us.
I
think sometimes we forget that the Savior’s invitation has always been “Come
unto me.”
Not come when you feel like you belong.
Not come when you finally feel worthy.
Just come.
When
feelings of self‑doubt or not belonging creep in, it can help to pause and ask:
·
Is
this thought bringing me closer to Christ or pulling me away?
·
Is
this coming from truth or from discouragement?
If
it’s distancing us from confidence, connection, or the Spirit, then it’s not
coming from God.
That
evening, we reminded my granddaughter that she did belong there that she was
safe, wanted, and loved and once she heard that reassurance, she was just fine.
Nothing about the restaurant changed, but everything changed once the truth was
spoken.
I
think the same is true for us. When those quiet thoughts tell us we don’t
belong, nothing around us may actually need to change. Sometimes we simply need
to remember what’s already true.
We
are children of God.
Our worth is great in His sight.
And
no matter what Satan whispers, we belong.
The
Savior has been trying to tell us that all along.
XOXO
Tiffanee
