Certainty.
Overnight, the British economy fell two spots in world ranking after their referendum to exit the EU. Our culture hates uncertainty. In fact, the measure of success in our lives is how much certainty we can amass–how predictable and stable our relationships are, how much money we have in the bank for today and tomorrow, etc.
Certainty brings us to a place where we don’t need to trust in anything but ourselves. Occasionally something happens, a struggle or adversity, and we turn to God almost as a reminder that, at least in a moment, we may not have control. There are some Christian cliches like: “lay your burden at the foot of the cross, just surrender unto the Lord, give it all to Jesus….” which are true, but aren’t as black and white as we make them appear.
Embracing uncertainty is countercultural. Trusting God in everything is hard and how to trust can be a puzzle.
There is, however, a place we can start that begins by encountering God in the opposite space: in the uncertain.
Most of the time, when we try to trust God, we continually come back to the same situation or issue over and over again. “This time, Lord, I’ll trust in you,” and not ten minutes later, “Lord, I need help trusting in you!” You’re not alone, even the disciples had trouble trusting.
Here’s the thing, the very rhythm of continually going back to the same struggle is a genuine process of figuring out what we don’t know: how to trust. We call this formation which is a part of holding on to a faith.
Faith is engaging what we do not know, it’s a mystery in many ways, a step into the uncertain. Consider this: When we approach what we do not know we are being formed by God.
When we listen for God we rarely get all the answers, maybe some pieces, but the rest we approach in mystery. Mystery is the embodiment of spirituality. Mystery is uncertainty. And it is in mystery we encounter a place and posture to feel, glimpse, and connect intimately with God.