Uncertain of the next step, but certain of God

“I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3 (NIV)

When my oldest son first started playing baseball, he was still relatively young and not used to a life lived around clocks and calendars. So it wasn’t uncommon for him to ask, “Is my game today?” “How many days until Saturday?”

Jesus says this childlike nature is necessary to enter the kingdom of heaven. My son wasn’t questioning if something would happen; in fact, he was confident that it would. But he was dependent upon me to tell him when it would happen.

Oswald Chambers, in My Utmost for His Highest, says, “The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty.” He says we can be certain of God, even if we are uncertain of the next step he wants us to take. We can be certain of God’s plan for us, even if we are uncertain of the specific details. Even though we’re uncertain, we can be confident God will not disappoint us (Romans 5:5).

This also means we can release the things we have no responsibility for and stop worrying about them. For instance, my son could be certain I would get him to the ball game, but he didn’t have to be concerned with how much gas it would require or how to get to the baseball field. He could just enjoy being a child and live in each moment, trusting that I was handling the details and that I would let him know when was time to go.

This is the childlike faith Jesus wants us to develop, where we grow confident each day that he will come through at just the right time and in just the right way.

Jon Walker is the author of Costly Grace. Rick Warren says Costly Grace “may be one of the most important books published during this time of economic uncertainty and world turmoil.”