Interestingly, Roger Olson posted about 3 kinds of doubt just the other day on his blog
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/rogereolso ... out-doubt/
And here are my own thoughts on doubt I posted a few years back
I am a natural born skeptic. That might surprise some of you who know I'm a Christian (and a pastor), but it's true. Before I gave my life to Christ, I had serious doubts about the existence of God. And guess what, after I gave my life to Christ, I still do sometimes! Here are 7 things I think every doubter, like me, should know:
1. Doubt may be a God-given personality trait
I think God created a wide range of personality types. Some people are just naturally faith-full (though us doubters call them gullible). Others are naturally skeptical. I think both of these personality types can be put to proper use by God, who created them.
2. Doubt should be applied fairly and with common sense
I think doubt is somewhat out of control in the age of reason. Though we may not be able to know some things (anything?) with absolute certainty, that shouldn't stop us from believing anything. Indeed, we believe all sorts of things every day without being absolutely sure that they are true. Faith shouldn't be held to an all-together different standard.
3. Doubt has not always been welcome in the church
I think the church has often been afraid of doubt in the ranks. I'm sure there are many reasons for this, but it is inappropriate. Asking questions is a valuable part of faith. The church needs to value the questions from its doubting members and non-members.
4. Doubt is an inevitable component of this present age
I think the Bible is clear that our knowledge in this present age is limited. This leaves room for doubt. Why did God create a world and an age where certainties are seemingly impossible? Maybe acting despite uncertainty is a necessary part of life. For whatever reason (I don't claim to know exactly why), doubt is a part of life.
5. Doubt may be minimized through investigation
I think that just because doubt is a part of life, we shouldn't be content to let everything remain in the realm of mystery. We should constantly be searching for the truth. I also think the truth is discoverable because God wants it (Him) to be known. Reason and faith are not opposites. Reason, used rightly, leads to faith.
6. Doubt is welcomed by God through prayer
I think people think (generally) that God hates doubt. I think God is against hard-hearts (which sometimes may be described as doubting), but I also see from Scripture that God is more than willing to interact with doubt. Think about it, a ton of the Psalms are records of God's people expressing their doubts about Him... and God saw fit to preserve those Psalms for us to see.
7. Doubt need not dictate your decision to follow Jesus
I think doubt is part of the journey of life. If you have doubts, it makes little to no sense (to me) to cement them and remove yourself from environments where faith may be kindled. The kind of doubting I'm referring to is not the opposite of faith. The opposite of faith is disobedience, not doubt.