How do you manage living in a VUCA world? One that is volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous?
Since we’ve moved to Singapore we’ve seen grandchildren born, all of our daughters move at least once, gone whale-watching, been in a tropical typhoon, learned how to vote outside the US, trusted God for transportation when we had no car, seen a new OMF general director be inducted into his role, welcomed and farwelled multiple colleagues in two different global orgs, and dug deeper into spirituality.
And like you, we have weathered a global pandemic and political unrest and witnessed aggressors force their will on those not able to defend themselves.
But what has stayed constant? God’s grace in our lives. God’s all-sufficient grace. God’s faithfulness that offers strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.
Recently I was able to identify an area in my life where there still is deep unrest when I found myself overreacting when two closely timed situations reinforced some of my limiting beliefs. The next day, I spent some time sitting, listening, and realizing that I needed to dig deeper into what it means to walk by faith even when things aren’t turning out the way I had hoped and prayed.
Were my prayers wrong?
Had I confused a principle of God’s faithfulness as a promise of something He would do?
How could I face my disappointment from a position of hope and confidence that God is still good?
I created a little poster, now hanging in my office, to help me remember a few things – things that are meaningful to me and help me cling to the hope I have in Christ:
- walk by faith. Without faith, it is impossible to please God.
- walk in ambiguity and complexity. It is hard to hope when I see things “out of control” or “not working as they ought to work.” And yet the troubles will continue to come. They cannot be avoided, nor escaped from. And even in the midst of this, God remains faithful.
- walk with confidence. God guides and God is sovereign. He is always working things out for good for those called according to His purposes.
If you are curious about my sources, I’ve included the key passage below. Please note that all these passages are excerpted from a longer text that provides a more comprehensive and nuanced explanation. It is not helpful to take a passage out of context to make it say what you want to say.
If you’d like a deeper conversation, let me know. I’m available!
“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
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Romans 15:13
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” Hebrews 10:23
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28