Monday, March 28, 2011

The Certainty of Uncertainty

This past week I have been really taken back by how uncertain our lives our.  Nothing is promised to us.  We are all blessed to have food to eat each day and a roof over our head but even that is a gift from God.  Its not something we are entitled to or deserve it is given to us out of the overflow of His goodness.   While I am sure this feeling of uncertainty has a deeper meaning there are a couple instances in the past week that it can be attributed to.  


First is what is happening in my family on my Mom's side.  My uncle, who I look up to, admire, and is one of my closest friends, is supposed to get married in two weeks in Mexico.  Key words....supposed to.  While my uncle is an awesome person with a great heart he has a tendency, as we all do, to be a little self-centered, focused more on his own personal gain than those in his life.  This has caused some major friction in the relationship between him and his fiance.  And while I care greatly for both of them the last thing that I would want for either of them is to force something that might not be right.  So, as they take this next week to evaluate and figure out what they both really want my family is left with some uncertainty.  Wedding or no wedding?  


The second thing carries a bit more weight to it.  My dad has a close friend, DK, who has been battling cancer for more than 11 years.  On Friday afternoon my dad got a phone call that DK had been admitted to the hospital and was not doing well, we weren't even sure if he would make it through the night.  This is always something that we knew could happen.  Because of his illness there was a constant uncertainty that one day DK could be here and the next morning he would be gone.  But on Friday this uncertainty became a certainty as he went to be with Jesus that night.  While I didn't know him as more than an acquaintance my dad and him and grown close and to see someone you love and care about hurting is not easy.  And as I was left to sit and reminisce about the many stories he told of DK, I was reminded of the uncertainty of life.  Each day is a gift and something that we should not take for granted.  Only God knows when our time here on earth is finished and we should choose to live that life out in thankfulness and joy for the one who sacrificed it all for us. 


But, in all this uncertainty and turmoil I know of one certainty, God.  He is my rock and my firm foundation.  Even when everything around me seems to be in flux the His consistent love, mercy and grace is the certainty I stand on.

12 comments:

  1. I think uncertainty is one of the hardest things for me. I love adventure, but I crave direction and certainty too. Thanks for sharing the shadows you're walking through ...

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  2. praise God for His certainty. it's so awesome to be able to look at all the chaos and turmoil around us and then look down and see that the Rock we are standing on is still the same

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  3. I love how you pointed out that God is our certainty. He is the one sure and constant thing in our lives. I can get so caught up in the minor things of this life and be weighed down, but I realize that God is so much bigger and the eternal things are what matter more. I will pray for you and your family. P.S. I am blesed to walk with you in Circles. :)

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  4. upon reading this i thought about our meeting tonight centered around Joseph. his life was all about uncertainty, but his constant was God and i'm so pleased to hear that you've recognized this in your own life. its so hard to do life without keeping that on the forefront of our minds, things get so hectic and scattered. i'll pray for you and your fam right after i read this post. lots of love.

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  5. Thank you, thank you so much for your words. As Shea said, God is the one constant that makes everything worth it. Joseph tried so hard to make sense of things and thought he had his life planned out perfectly. But there comes a time when we have to let go and let him take over.

    Those two examples you gave are so personal and powerful, and they are such great reminders of how we can only look to God as our constant.

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  6. Last paragraph = so good. Thank you for sharing. These are both very big events. I am praying for you dad & for your uncle. May you speak truth and love to both of them.

    Praise the Lord for His ability to be out rock, our salvation, our hope, our certainty. Thank you Kate.

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  7. First of all, it was great spending time with you last night...girls night!

    Although uncertainty is scary at times, I think that it is good. We need to know our certainty is in God. I love when you said,

    "We are all blessed to have food to eat each day and a roof over our head but even that is a gift from God. Its not something we are entitled to or deserve it is given to us out of the overflow of His goodness."

    I don't think there are a lot of people who realize that we are so blessed and if they do, find happiness in it.

    I pray that you have a great trip enjoying the time with your family and that you would get along with your mom.

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  8. Amen Kate!
    I have felt some of the same "shadows" in losing my grandmother and feeling my own grief and then watching my dad grieve the death of his mom as well." Such a blow to watch someone you love feel grief so acutely. Praying for you!

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  9. yes. HE alone is our certainty. but thank you for the reminder that we must live each day for what it is: time God gave us to further glorify HIM. not our bad attitudes, not a funk we are in, not all the busyness of activities/ thoughts/ things. but if we do not set apart our days and the stuff we fill them up with the be glorifying to HIM alone, then really, what is the point? gosh, your post totally made me think about all this. thanks. got my day going in the right direction again. praise God for that and for your knowing that HE is certainty. Certain to love. Certain to never leave us or forsake us. Certain to be good. and yes, how good He is.

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  10. praying you can cling to the unchanging, unwavering love and peace and joy of Christ as you get ready to go to Mexico. the presence of Christ is obvious in your life, i know that speaks volumes to your family. praying for a rad trip. :)

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  11. Thanks for this Kate. With uncertainty come unrest and sometimes pain and trouble. What is comforting to know is that God is for certain, a promise that will not be taken away. No matter what the uncertainty of life brings, God is there, 100%. Praying for you, your dad, and your family. One thing I'm certain of, is you are awesome :)

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  12. sweet kate, that was beautiful. thank you so much for sharing. i think that often we are waiting for the uncertainty to go away before we make our next move. what a silly thing that is. like you said, it is always present, always with us. we will always have a sense of uncertainty about SOMETHING because we live in a changing, inconstant world. thank the Lord we know where we come from--we know our one constant, perfect thing.

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