31Days - Unknown

We tend to eat out after church on Sundays. My husband used to start the car and just head out. He doesn't do that as much anymore. He's figured out how crazy it drives me. Why? Because I want to know where we're going before we turn the car out of the drive. He has no clue where we're going; no decisions have been made yet; the family is still in discussion, but... he's GOING! And I'm thinking (maybe slightly outloud) "But what if you're going in the wrong direction?!"

Yes, I'm one of those who pulls up Google maps before going anywhere. Not only that, but I've even been known to pull up the satellite view to see what the surrounding area looks like. I mean, where's the entrance to the parking lot going to be?

And I really wish Yelp would include just a little more information in restaurant reviews. I'd love it if they said, "You'll feel entirely comfortable in your running shoes and t-shirt here" or... "Jeans and a nice shirt works well" or "Some nicer pants and shirt would be better" or "Hey, Jenn... forget it... you're just not going to be comfortable here."

I want to know – before I get there – what I'm getting into!

As I look at my brainstorming list of fears I notice... there are three different fears that are basically one and the same: Not knowing where I'm going; Unfamiliar situations; and The unknown.

So my fear for Day Twenty-three:

I am afraid of the unknown.

It's a real fear... with some valid reasons behind it. Not knowing where you are going can land you into some trouble. I remember ending up in a not-so-nice area of St. Louis at night back before cell phones, Google, and Garmin. And I've felt extremely uncomfortable finding myself in a dressier restaurant in my sweatshirt. Oops. So there's some truth in the fear. But what's the real Truth? Truth with a capital T?

Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go forth from your country,
And from your relatives
And from your father's house,
To the land which I will show you;
(Genesis 12:1)

Sometimes God calls us to leave the familiar to go to the unknown.

God is asking Abram to leave the familiar, the place he knows. I've already talked about leaving the familiar in Day 15– I am afraid of change, so I think I'll keep it pretty short here. If you haven't read Day 4, you might want to, though.

Sometimes God calls us without telling us exactly where.

"A land which I will show you" doesn't really give Abram a lot of information. I can imagine what it would have been like if I were Sarai... as my husband starts the car and heads out of the parking lot before the restaurant is decided. Abram doesn't know where he's going. He's just going. I want to know where first! But Abram just puts it in drive and goes. He's willing to leave the place he's grown up, everything familiar, even his family to strike out on his own to the unknown. But he knows God knows. And he knows he's not really alone. He knows...

God goes with us into the unknown.

God told him, "A land I will show you." Abram knows God's going with him. If someone tells me they are going to show me, I understand that they are going with me. Actually, I will assume I am to follow – that they are going before me, even. God promises His people several times that He will go before them. Abram knew he wasn't going alone.

I will lead the blind by a way they do not know,
In paths they do not know I will guide them.
I will make darkness into light before them
And rugged places into plains.
These are the things I will do,
And I will not leave them undone.
(Isaiah 42:16)

God leads us when we cannot see.

God guides us when we don't know where we are going.

God prepares the path before us – smoothing it and providing light.

God is emphatic in His promise!

Abram could go, because before Paul ever wrote the words, Abram knew and really believed:

We walk by faith, not by sight....
(2 Corinthians 5:7)

And...

God is able to make all grace abound to you,
so that always having all sufficiency in everything,
you may have an abundance for every good deed....
(2 Corinthians 9:8)

God really is sufficient!

Father God, the unknown is such a scary place for me sometimes. I want to know where I'm going; how I'm getting there; what to expect when I get there; how to dress; what to take... I want to know it all! It drives me crazy not to know. And I know what that says about me. I want to trust You, Daddy. But if I trusted You – really trusted You – then I wouldn't worry so much about all those unknowns. Help me to relax into the truth that you are Alpha and Omega, beginning and end. You've already been where I'm heading. You've readied the path. Help to truly believe that You are good.

Fear: I am afraid of the unknown.

Truth:

• Sometimes God calls us to leave the familiar to go to the unknown. (Genesis 12:1)
• Sometimes God calls us without telling us exactly where. (Genesis 12:1)
• God goes with us into the unknown. (Genesis 12:1)
• God leads us when we cannot see. (Isaiah 42:16)
• God guides us when we don't know where we are going. (Isaiah 42:16)
• God prepares the path before us – smoothing it and providing light. (Isaiah 42:16)
• God is emphatic in His promise! (Isaiah 42:16)
• We walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7)
• God really is sufficient! (2 Corinthians 9:8)

-jenn

Note: This post is part of a 31-day writing challenge. Click here to see the rest of the posts on my 31 Days of Fear (and Truth).