I Don’t Know

This list of things I don’t know at my new school seems to be growing rather than diminishing.  It seems that every week there is something else I need to figure out, a new hurdle to master.  At times it is downright exhausting trying to discern what I need to do so I can keep on top of things and keep my class functioning properly.

Added to my disconcertion is that I often don’t know who to ask to help me.  My coworkers are very gracious about answering my questions but sometimes I don’t get the right person for what I need.  

How am I supposed to ask questions when sometimes I don’t even know what to ask?  Often, I don’t realize until too late that something needs attention or that I don’t have all the information I need.

Life can feel like this sometimes.  There is so much going on.  Where do I turn to for help?  Things get in such a muddle at times that I can’t think straight.  I get overtired and/or overwrought and I really lose my focus.  

Often my mode of operating leads me to seek answers in the wrong places.  I try to solve things myself.  I complain to those near and dear to me, when they really can’t help with my concerns.  I get in a place where I really don’t know which direction to take. 

Jeremiah 33 has a good answer for these feelings:

“Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” (verse 3 NIV)

The answer to “I don’t know” is very simple – God is it.  God is a sure thing – He WILL answer each of us.  Not when He feels like it or when He has the time.  He is always there to listen.

Of course, we don’t always like His answers as sometimes His answer is no or later.  Thankfully, we know that He is the right place to go to with any concern.  He will show us all we need to live a fruitful and joy filled Christian life and give us what we need when we need it.

Sometimes, though, I don’t know what to pray.  Turmoil reigns and my thoughts are in a jumble.  I don’t truly know what I need.  In Romans we are told:

“We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us.” (Romans 8:26 NIV)

So, even when we don’t know what is necessary, the Holy Spirit does.  When life feels upside-down, the Spirit helps us wade through the mess to journey toward the truth.  We are never left on our own to figure it all out.

I have had many prayer conversations with God which begin with – “I really don’t know what I need right now, Lord.”  In these unsure moments, God ministers to me with His love and grace, assuring me that I will be okay.  

There are days when I still feel like the answers I seek are hidden from me.  While I like things clearly defined, God doesn’t always work that way in my life.  He doesn’t always give an immediate answer and that interim time can be challenging for me.  The only way I get through life is knowing with absolute certainty that God will hear me and will answer.  

Hold onto the One who knows you inside and out and who knows what is best for you at this particular time.  Trust the Holy Spirit to help you voice what is needful and then rest assured that the answers you seek will be provided when you need them.

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