Uncertainty

According to some people, this world is VUCA: volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. As human beings, we are bound to time, and we cannot know what the next second holds.

We face this reality every time we encounter unpleasant surprises and sudden misfortunes. Keeping close to God does not always shield us from problems and suffering. We cannot be sure of anything around us because most things are uncertain.

The apostle James wrote, “you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” (James 4:14, NIV). It is healthy to acknowledge that things do not always depend on us. The good news is that not everything around us is uncertain.

In the midst of this world full of worries and doubts, God appears as the One who is in control. God declares “the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done" (Isa. 46:10). He gave us “the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts" (2 Pet. 1:19), and left us a pathway full of promises and hope.

Jesus addressed our everyday fears when He said, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? . . . Therefore do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?’ or `What shall we drink?’ or `What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matt. 6:25-26; 31-33).

Yes, we do not know what will happen tomorrow. We cannot control everything. But we do know what will happen at the end of our history, because Jesus has promised it: He will “come again” (John 14:3).

That is the greatest certainty of all.