by Sometimes we feel like there are just missing pieces. Sometimes we feel like we don’t have it all together. What happens when the foundation you’ve built your life on starts to crack?
The Deconstruction Zone
You’ve built a life for yourself—a solid identity, what you thought was an unshakeable foundation. Then something happens, and it all starts to come apart. The cracks begin to show. There’s a word for this that’s become increasingly common: deconstruction.
Maybe you grew up in church, had Christian parents, or came to faith at a young age. If so, you can probably relate to at least one of these biblical scenarios:
The Disillusioned Disciples (Luke 24): Walking away from Jerusalem with heads hung low, they said, “We were hoping Jesus was the one who would redeem Israel.” Perhaps you’ve felt this—hoping a new pastor would change everything, or that moving churches would make faith feel more real.
Doubting Thomas (John 20): “Unless I see the nail marks and put my finger where the nails were, I will not believe.” You just want something real, something firm, beyond a shadow of doubt.
The Mountain Doubters (Matthew 28): Even face-to-face with the resurrected Jesus, “some doubted.” Sometimes we distrust our own spiritual experiences, gaslighting ourselves into believing miraculous moments didn’t really happen.
Here’s what I’ve learned: Doubt is not the opposite of faith. Certainty is.
Why Rigid Things Break
When I have certainty about something—like the new Culver’s that finally opened in Bedford—I don’t need faith anymore. Faith always has room for doubt, for the possibility that things might not happen as expected.
Think about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego facing the fiery furnace: “We know our God is able to deliver us from this. But even if he doesn’t, we’re not going to bow down.” That’s faith—assurance that God can, while allowing for uncertainty about outcomes.
Rigid things break. We see this everywhere:
- Buildings without earthquake flexibility crumble
- Fine china shatters while plastic bounces
- Authoritarian governments eventually collapse
- Inflexible relationships fracture
Your faith is no different. If it’s built like a house of cards—rigid and dependent on every piece staying perfectly in place—one challenged belief can bring everything crashing down. But faith built like a spider web? When one strand breaks, the rest holds, and repairs are possible.
The Wine Skin Principle
Jesus taught this concept perfectly: “No one puts new wine into old wineskins, otherwise the skins will burst… They put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved” (Matthew 9:17).
Old wineskins become rigid and can’t expand. New wine releases gas as it ferments, requiring flexibility. Your childhood faith was wonderful—it set you up well. But if your faith hasn’t grown with you, what are you doing?
Paul explains this in Galatians 3: The law was our guardian until Christ, teaching us with rigid “thou shalt” and “thou shalt not” commands—perfect for children learning boundaries. But mature faith moves beyond rigid rules to Christ’s teaching: “You have heard it said… but I say to you.”
As Aslan tells Lucy in Narnia: “As you grow, I will become bigger.”
The Reconstruction Process
Many people experience three phases:
- Construction: Faith is built, foundations are laid
- Deconstruction: Realizing old understanding doesn’t serve anymore, tearing down to get back to the basics
- Reconstruction: Building something even more beautiful and lasting
Unfortunately, many stop at deconstruction. My generation—millennials—is known for this. We deconstruct but never rebuild, throwing everything out and walking away.
But here’s what’s interesting: Research shows people aren’t necessarily leaving Jesus—they’re leaving rigid church structures. They want authenticity over perfection, depth over surface-level platitudes.
Why Deconstruction Happens
Several factors drive this crisis:
- Declining trust in institutions due to hypocrisy among leaders
- Increased exposure to diversity challenging narrow worldviews
- Burnout among high-performing Christians – 20% of members doing 80% of church work
- Prioritizing conformity over unity—demanding everyone think, dress, and act identically
- Political idolatry and conspiracy theories that younger generations recognize as harmful
- Lack of space for doubt and questions in rigid church environments
A Better Way Forward
For Churches:
- Embrace Jesus’ model: respond to doubt with care, compassion, and empathy
- Prioritize core teachings: love God completely, love others as yourself
- Cultivate authentic community where imperfection is welcome
- Address failures with gospel humility instead of pretending everything’s perfect
For Individuals in Crisis:
- Understand that doubt is part of the journey, not the end
- Recognize deconstruction as reevaluation aimed at reconstruction
- Let Jesus’ core teachings guide your rebuilding process
- Seek community and trusted guides, even outside your denomination
- Engage deeply with Scripture and diverse Christian traditions
Remember the father in Mark 9: “I do believe; help my unbelief!” Both can exist simultaneously. Struggling with one aspect of faith doesn’t negate everything else.
The Kintsugi Principle
In Japanese culture, broken pottery is repaired with gold inlays—not to hide the cracks, but to emphasize them. These pieces become more valuable after being broken and restored. The cracks become a beautiful feature.
Rigid things break, but God helps put them back together. When something’s restored with God’s help, it becomes even more beautiful. You have a greater story to tell, becoming stronger and more valuable along the way.
As Psalm 18 beautifully states: “God made my life complete when I placed all the pieces before him… I feel put back together… God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to His eyes.”
If you’re in a season of deconstruction, know that it’s okay to have questions. Your doubts don’t disqualify you—they’re part of the journey toward a more authentic, flexible faith that can grow with you through every season of life.
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Daniel N. Lee 