Resting in the Trough of Uncertainty
Uncertainty. It’s normal to experience this in the journey of singleness. And in life really. If it is left unembraced though, we can end up striving, disoriented, weary, and troubled. We can even choose to swim against the current God has clearly marked for us making the journey much harder than it was designed to be. I’ve done this a time or two. Ok – maybe more than a time or two. When uncertainty has hovered around me, it’s my thoughts that have wandered and ultimately exposed the weakness of my trust muscles. There have been times that I have thought myself into a frenzy, rather than fix my gaze on Jesus and simply trust Him to lead my heart when the path before me seems unclear. Can you relate? I’m still learning to choose to fix my gaze on Jesus daily.
I’m thankful for those moments God has chosen to expose my weakness, though. It’s given me an opportunity to invite God to transform me, to be my strength in weakness, and to expand me into the identity God gave me even when I was being fashioned in my mother’s womb. He continues to lovingly bring to light those things in my life that aren’t really a part of who God designed me to be. Like any flourishing plant, I’ve said yes to having my Gardner continuously prune me as He sees fit. If one is not being pruned, one is not growing. I remind myself of this every time I feel the discomfort of the pruning shears and thank God that my growth has not been stunted. Instead – I’m being rewarded with a good pruning! I also remind myself that the forthcoming fruit will be well worth it.
Back to that nagging uncertainty. Is it a friend or foe? I’d like to propose that depends on what we do with it. I’ve always wanted to know the “why” behind anything and everything. So you can bet I’ve asked God why He doesn’t just lay out the grand plan He has for me clearly. Why didn’t He tell me when I was 21 that I would still be waiting for marriage at 25, at 29, at 34? His ways are higher than mine, and I’m sure He knew that information wouldn’t be helpful at the time. You see, I’ve had divine appointments over the years. Divine appointments I wouldn’t have entered into had I known what I know now. I would have missed out on some of the biggest blessings of my life. It’s God’s goodness when He doesn’t show us the whole picture. He grows us. He takes us on a journey and accomplishes His purposes in us to shape us and make us who we need to be for the next part of our journey. You see, we grow into our destiny, we don’t instantly step into it.
Over the years, uncertainty has been both friend and foe for me. I don’t believe it was ever meant to be my foe though. It’s really been an invitation for me to partner with God and trust Him to help me navigate the abundant life He has for me. The times it became my foe were when I tried to leave surrendering to God out of the equation. I’ve learned that true freedom comes through surrender. It seems upside down, I know. But it’s true. Jesus basically says that to find life, die to self. Check it out in Matthew 16:24-25.
As I’ve been thinking on the topic of uncertainty, God’s been speaking to me a lot about the ocean and waves. There are many things to ponder. The ocean is vast. It is unpredictable. When sailing across the ocean, there are many highs and lows to experience. When diving to the depths of the ocean, there’s beauty to be unveiled and discovered. When swimming through the crashing waves, there’s always the chance that you can get washed over and pummeled until you’re spit out again to gasp for some much needed air. These experiences can expose weakness and makes you stronger all at the same time. When floating on the surface, there’s the crest of the wave that allows you to see the horizon, and then the trough of the wave that surrounds you with a wall of water on both sides and leaves you without a line of sight to the horizon.
The beauty for me is that God is sovereign over all – the ocean, my desires, the grand plans He has for me. Through all the uncertainty and questions I have, there is one thing I remain certain of – and that is the character of God! At His command he can stir up the sea or still the rising waves. He is the One who has drawn the boundary line between the land and sea so that even though the waves roar, they cannot pass over it. Is anything too difficult for Him? Whenever I can’t see the path before me, He sees it. Nothing surprises Him. He’s a good Father who gives good gifts.
"And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him." Hebrews 11:6
If you find yourself resting in the trough of uncertainty too, or are trying to swim through the wall of water hiding your horizon, I pray this blog post encourages you. Remember, our faith to trust God with the future pleases Him. That’s my heart’s desire above all else, to please Jesus, my Beloved. I don’t know about you, but I’m going to take a deep breath and enjoy the relaxing float while it lasts. I will rest in the trough of the wave as long as God has me there. Who knows when the season will shift to swimming through the crashing waves in order to reach the shore or diving deep to discover something beautiful. There’s a season for everything!
If you’re interested, I’ve compiled a few songs to listen to while resting in the trough of the wave: 
Thank you for the words of encouragement. I followed a link from the Shafferland blog.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Odie! So thankful you were encouraged. :)
DeleteJamie!
ReplyDeleteAs always, thank you so so much for this. I literally just sent my pastor an email this morning about exactly THIS. I have been mulling over it all day and of course, anxiety and fear took over. I felt led to come to your blog and voila!
Thank you Jamie, God bless you.
Hi Bee! Praise God! I love how His timing is always perfect. :) And I also love how His grace abounds. May the Lord give you peace that passes all understanding. And may He bless you abundantly!
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