His Ambassador Blog

The fear of the unknown or of what the future holds is one of the most common fears that we don’t talk about enough. Imagine for a moment, that you are outside in the woods, alone, at night. The only thing you have with you is a tiny battery powered flashlight. When you shine this flashlight, you can only see a sliver of space in front of you compared to what seems like an abyss of darkness surrounding you. Our lives are often like this imagination. We can never be certain of what our future holds. We can only see the space that we’re in right now. For many, this causes extreme anxiety and uncertainty. But as believers we should not fear our futures, because we serve a God who is in control.

This week I will graduate from high school. What a big step ahead for the class of 2024. I must share a secret, though… I am an imposter. I wasn’t always a part of the class of 2024. It was spring of my sophomore year, and I was looking at the credits left that I needed to graduate. I was only going to need one credit after my junior year. Thus, I began looking at early graduation. The idea frightened me a bit at first. This would mean college a year early, not being at school with my friends, wondering if I was truly ready for adulthood. Every question and ‘what-if’ rushed through my head. But I took that situation to God, and I felt the Holy Spirit pushing me to go through with it. Many were confused with the idea, some weren’t sure what to say, and some even discouraged it. This decision was not normal. Many voiced that they thought I’d be ‘missing out’ on the rest of my high school experience. But I chose not to let others’ opinions of my decision effect my trust in God to guide me in His plan for my life. This obviously took faith, but I knew I needed to act on what God had placed on my heart. I had to trust that God was going to keep opening doors that needed to be opened and closing doors that needed to be closed. I don’t know who I will meet in college, where I will live afterwards, if I’ll get married and to whom, or much else about my future. Oftentimes anxiety will flood in when thinking about these things, but I’d like to share with you how I am able to trust God with my future, even when I am uncertain of what it will hold.

Firstly, to trust someone, you must know them.

The bible instructs us to seek the Lord and in doing so, we will begin to know Him, His nature, and His character. Knowing who God is allows us to trust Him, but you cannot trust someone you don’t know, and you can’t know someone that you don’t spend time with. This means that it is crucial to be in the word consistently every day. It also means praying continually as well as fellowshipping with God. There are three important things to know about God that can encourage you to trust Him with your future. One, God is omnipresent. Psalm 139:7-8 says, “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.” Omnipresent means that God is present everywhere, wholly, always. He sees all and is with us through all. Two, God is omnipotent. Jeremiah 32:7 says, “Oh, Lord God! Behold, You Yourself have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for You.” Omnipotent means all powerful. God reigns over everything in this earth and can do that which seems impossible. And finally, three, God is omniscient. Psalm 147:5 says, “Great is our Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite.” Omniscient means all-knowing. God is aware of the past, present, and future. He knows all and sees all, which includes the actual and the possible. With these qualities, I am confident to say that God is fully capable of overseeing your future, it just comes down to whether you are willing to submit your future to Him.

Secondly, you must recognize your God-given purpose. To do this you must have new life in Christ and must accept the new identity that comes with it.

God created humans to glorify Him and live in companionship with Him, but He also has a specific and purposeful calling for each of our lives. It’s likely that when you think about the future, you worry that you’ll miss His purpose for you, or you may think that you don’t have one since you are unsure of what it is. It’s important to remind yourself that God has a plan for your life, and He will carry it out to you in time (Ecclesiastes 3:1). You may also feel anxiety about not being ‘ready’ or ‘qualified’ for the purpose God has for you. I want to reassure with a quote I heard that sticks with me unto this day: God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called. Countless times in the bible, God uses the people you’d least expect to conduct His purposes. The amazing thing is that those people trusted God with their future and the unknown, despite being unsure of what would come next or how God was going to use them. Even if you’re still unsure of what God has planned for your future, allow yourself to be open to God’s endless possibilities. Be usable.

Finally, if you can sense God leading you somewhere, go.

Opinions of others, while sometimes are helpful, can distract from only following the judgement and truth of God. It’s important that you block out all the noise of this world, step out in faith, and follow God. An important thing to remember when you’re listening for the voice of God to lead you, is that God’s voice will never contradict what is in the bible. If you feel like you are being pulled in a direction that goes against the word, that is not the voice of God, and you should not listen to it. This all comes back to knowing the word, knowing God, so that you can trust Him and know His voice when you are unsure of where to step next. Thinking about the future is like stepping out onto a stormy sea. If you keep your eyes focused on Jesus and walk towards Him now matter where He takes you, you won’t start sinking.

Today I challenge you to trust God with the parts of the future you’re worried about. You might be graduating high school as well or even college. You may be waiting on important test results, or you’re concerned about a future visit to the doctor. Whatever unknown is making you anxious, God can manage that for you, if you allow Him. Trust Him.