“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take” (Proverbs 3:5-6, NLT).
One early morning, my family and I hiked the blustery winter trail.
The sun was hidden behind the pale, gray sky, leaving the landscape dormant and still. A bitter chill from the air cut across my face as I stuffed my icy-cold hands in my pockets. Entering into the sleeping forest, where buds had not been awakened for spring, the trees stood naked with not a single leaf to carry. My husband and kids ran ahead of me, ready to explore.
Soon, the path became quiet.
I could no longer hear the trampling of the kid’s feet against the frozen earth nor the sound of their voices. It had become just me and the wintry woods.
Pressing deeper into the woods, I could hear the snapping and crackling of branches from the trees that echoed within the dense forest. My feet moved swift with each sound, but the thickness of the earth’s breath enshrouded my view. The haze hovered, wrapping me like a cocoon in its rather cold and ambiguous embrace.
Then I came to an impasse, a fork in the road.
Uncertain of which trail the family had taken, I knew I was lost. I stopped in my tracks, wondering why everyone thought running ahead and leaving mom behind was a good idea. I mean, they know I’ve never been on this trail before. Not to mention my husband knows that I can get lost in our local grocery store! They also know that I tend to think that every bird fluttering in a bush could potentially be a prowling lion. Did I mention I live in Oregon, where the only lions "prowling" are living in a zoo?! So why would they have run ahead without me?
Stalled along the trail, I weighed my options.
I watched as clouds like waves gently rolled along with the earth. It was as if heaven decided to come down and meet me here. And in this case, it would have been helpful, seeing as I had no idea where I was going.
Then came the sound of hope—a still, small voice coming from beyond the hill. My husband and kids called my name and began directing me from a distance. I’m sure it was quite the scene since I was only about 40 yards away from them. However, because of the thickness of the fog and crowded trees, I could not see them. Nonetheless, I followed their voices until I met them there under a tree.
WHEN I CANNOT SEE
All the way home, I thought about our hike. The fog that distorted my view resonated deeply with what I was currently facing in my life. It appeared that I had come to my own spiritual impasse as that along the trail.
It didn’t seem fair the first time, but hearing that we had another special needs kid a second time, felt like a cruel joke. As a parent, you begin to ask all the “why’s,” such as why is this happening...again? And when you get through the “why’s,” you begin to ask the “what’s” and the “how’s.” What are we going to do? How is he ever going to learn? What kind of life will he have? How are we going to make it through this again? It’s hard, painful, and can leave you filled with uncertainty. As parents, we had attempted everything to figure out what we should do for our child, but there have been moments that we were unable to see our way through.
Have you been there? You’ve tried everything to remedy the situation, and yet the journey still appears to be remarkably unclear. Maybe you don’t know how you will make it through the month financially or if the next treatment will be the one to cure your cancer. Perhaps you aren’t sure where you are going vocationally or if the child you are praying for will ever come home.
We all face moments where we aren't sure how things will work out. This is hard for us because we desire certainty as it gives us a sense of security, safety, and control over our lives.
And when we don't have clarity, it can leave us feeling powerless, fearful and anxious.
However, the unfortunate reality is that we can be certain that we will face uncertainty.
LISTEN TO HIS VOICE
Feeling lost, I didn’t know which way to go. I couldn’t understand why God wouldn’t lay out a plan for me and give me the big picture for our son. Everyday seemed like a new challenge, by which I had no answers for. So here I was, seeking the horizon, but the fog still obstructing my view. I had been walking through the same haze as on the trail, unable to see in front of me.
Then I remembered the trail, the fog, and the small voices of my family giving me direction from over the hill.
In a similar way, there's another kind of voice calling out---a voice that lovingly tells us to come follow Him.
In John 10:27, Jesus, the good shepherd says,
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”
Notice this passage doesn’t say that my sheep see me and follow me, but instead, it says they listen and follow me. The sheep didn’t need to see the good shepherd to know what to do or where to go. They were able to recognize their shepherd's call and followed after him.
Although I may recognize the good shepherd’s voice in my life, when I’m facing uncertainty, I’d much rather see God move than hear from him. I want to see God part waters and perform miracles. My natural propensity is to think that if God is not acting on my behalf and making everything work together perfectly, then he must not care, or even worse, he must not be real.
We are often misguided in thinking that seeing is believing, but Scripture repeatedly shows that,
“Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).
KNOW WHO YOU ARE RUNNING TO
There's a story in the Bible about a man named Bartimaeus, who was physically blind. When he had heard that Jesus and his disciples were in Jericho, Bartimaeus began calling out to him alongside the road. Although people told him to be quiet, he shouted even more. Finally, Jesus stopped and called the man over. Bartimaeus threw his cloak aside, jumped to his feet, and came to Jesus. (Mark 10:46-52)
Did you catch that? Bartimaeus heard that Jesus was near, and although he couldn’t see, he came to Jesus anyway.
After Jesus healed him, he said,
“your faith has healed you” (Mark 10:52).
In other words, Bartimaeus ran to Jesus in faith, not by sight.
Bartimaeus didn’t need to see because he knew who he was running to.
Can we say the same? Are we willing to walk blindly by faith listening to God's voice, or do we need to see it all worked out before we trust him?
YOU DON'T ALWAYS NEED TO SEE THROUGH THE TREES
We will all face moments when the fog doesn’t lift as quickly as we would like or when we can’t see what’s in front of us. However, the truth is that we don’t need to see all the details or even the big picture of how life will work out. Moreover, Scripture says that we should expect uncertainty and that we will “know in part” (1 Cor 13:12). In the Old Testament, when God called Abram, he told him to “go to the land that I will show you” (Gen 12:1b). That seems slightly vague, and yet it says that “Abram went” (Gen 12:4). In the New Testament, the disciples were made aware that they too would have to confront the unknowns in following Jesus (Luke 9:57-59).
Is it possible to face uncertainty, and at the same time, know that we can trust God with our every need?
This, then, is our confidence:
When we feel uncertain, we can trust that we have a God who is certain in all things.
Just like Bartimaeus, God is asking us to walk blindly in full faith, knowing that He can be trusted in every detail, problem, frustration, or loss.
Let this be our prayer,
Lord, when I cannot see, help me listen to your voice, trust in your promises, and walk by faith, not by sight.
“For we live by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7, NIV).
Great story, Thanks for sharing!