We are living in Uncertain Days. It is true no matter where you live in the world. That’s because we live in an era when people are intimately connected in some way to everyone else on the planet. Sure, there are a few people living completely off the grid, but even those people will learn someday how their lives are intertwined with all the other lives on the planet.
Disaster in one place disrupts the supply chain for everyone else. War between two countries soon involves many other countries (think selling arms, food and medical assistance etc.). Food shortages in one country easily lead to mass migrations into other countries. Political decisions made by one government impact other nations.
The English poet, John Donne started his poem No Man Is An Island with the familiar words – No man is an island, entire of itself. What is not so well know is the way he ended the poem – Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind.
I don’t know what the world looked like when he penned those words (1624), but they are certainly applicable to our world today. We are all involved with each other.
We should not be surprised
that the world is getting worse.
And that means Uncertainty quickly spreads from one place to another. It is a short distance between NYC and Sydney, Australia (9,935 air miles).
The question most people are asking is: Will the world ever have peace and security again? It’s possible but not likely. Jesus told His disciples that the world would be filled with tribulation (John 16:33) and while this passage may not have a general application to all men in all times, Paul’s statement about dangerous times in the last days of human history is general and broad in its application (2 Timothy 3:1f). We should not be surprised that the world is getting worse.
So how are we as Christians to live in Uncertain Days? Here are a few suggestions:
Live in Faith. Faith that Jesus is coming again. Faith that the city Abraham searched for (Hebrews 11:10) will be a reality and someday it will be worth it all.
Live Prayerfully. Pray that God will keep you Faithful. Pray that God will provide for and protect those in The Family who are suffering in ways that you and I can only imagine. Pray that we will all endure to the end and thereby prove we are His (Matthew 10:22).
Live Expectantly. Expect His return. He promised it (John 14:1-3) – we should expect it (Philippians 3:20, 2 Peter 3:14).
Live Joyously. Put your focus on Christ; who He is; what He did for you; His soon return instead of on the trials of life. You can maintain a joyful testimony in the Uncertain Days we live in.
Live Answeringly. Believe it or not that is a word! It means to live as someone who has the answer. And in Christ we have the answer to the Uncertainties of life. Live with a scarlet A on your chest! Not like Hawthorne’s character Hester Prynne but as a follower of Jesus who knows the Answer and is willing to share it.
You don’t have a choice whether or not you Live in Uncertain Days but you do have a choice how you live in those days.
Stay in the Word
Pastor Steve
A Word for the Week 