3 Steps

3 Steps Time and time again, God has presented His people with unknowns, using them to show the strength, beauty, and character of the Almighty Creator. I’d never claim Unknowns are easy. I still have a pit in my stomach every time I enter a car, and I don’t know if that will ever go away. I’ve been changed by my Unknowns, yet God has used them to move me closer to where He wants me to be. That said, it’s hard to endure difficult and confusing circumstances, so here are three steps to help you live with the Unknown: 1. Surrender your Unknown to God. (Psalm 55:22, Romans 12:12) Understand what’s happening to you is something beyond your control. Unknowns often feel too big for us to handle. But God, the most powerful being in the universe, not only offers to carry our burdens, but invites us to give them to Him. He wants us to draw near to Him in our times of need. Spend some time in prayer and in reading His word. And don’t be afraid to cry. We sometimes need to allow ourselves to break down in order to be rebuilt again. 2. Talk through your Unknowns with others. (Romans 12:15, James 1:19) This doesn’t mean find other people who’ll brush aside your troubles to complain about their own, or someone who’ll just amplify your fears. Find someone who practices what I call “the ministry of silence”; someone who’ll simply sit there and listen. These friends will recognize when you’re broken, and they won’t try to force other brokenness on you during a time of vulnerability. When they do choose to speak, however, listen to what they have to say. More often than not, what they’ll say is helpful. 3. Begin the process of healing. (Isaiah 38:17, Matthew 11:28-30) This doesn’t just happen overnight. Healing from Unknowns takes time, and that’s okay. And healing doesn’t mean your life goes back to the way it was before. Allow yourself room to grow into who, how, and what God wants you to be. He wants you to be His child. He wants you to feel safe in His arms. He wants you to go on to do some pretty amazing things. And He wants you to know this as you move forward, having become stronger and wiser than before. It can be easy to feel alone in these times that feel unstable. But we’re far from alone. We have people who will listen to us. We have a Savior who died for us. We have a loving Father who has been there for us before we were even a thought. Even during all the rocky and uncertain moments, there is one thing we can truly know. God will always be by our side, even in the Unknowns. Here’s a short prayer: God. I just don’t know. But I know you do. Help me to trust. Draw me close to you. Amen.