56 % who said they increased their Bible use said that it was because they recognized it was an important part of their faith journey. This number is down from 67 % in 2016, but on par with 53 % in 2014, and 58 % in 2015. 39 % turned to the Bible after experiencing difficult life situations, up from 26 % in 2016. 30 % of adults who increased readership say they saw a positive shift in someone else who had used the Bible, and that was the reason they decided to read and listen to it more. 20 % of adults who read the Bible more said they did so because someone asked them to.
How Christians deal with doubt
Research from Barna explored how Christians or past Christians deal with spiritual doubt. 66 % said they have dealt with a season of spiritual doubt, and a quarter have said they are still dealing with feelings of doubt. 40 % feel they have worked through a time of doubt or faith crisis. 35 % say they have not felt doubt. Christians and past Christians had different ways of dealing with these feelings. A fairly common response was to quit attending church, at 46 %. 30 % chose to stop reading the Bible. 28 % decided to stop praying. Almost a quarter( 24 %) stopped speaking about their faith, spirituality and religion with friends and family. However, when they needed to, those having feelings of doubt also sought out the help of family and friends to help them through it( 40 %). 29 % looked to the Bible to discover answers to some of the questions they may have. 21 % went to church or talked to a pastor or spiritual leader( 18 %). 19 % went to a spouse. 16 % looked to books on spirituality or religion, 12 % looked for resources online, and 5 % went to counseling. 3 % decided to attend a conference or retreat.
Overall, 52 % say that their faith is stronger after dealing with these doubts, and 28 % say that their feelings are unchanged. This points to the fact that many of the coping approaches do help. 8 % say their faith is weaker, and 12 % say they lost their faith.
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