We Don’t Know What’s Going to Happen and That’s Okay: Living in Holy Uncertainty

by John Mark Comer

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Faith, Christianity, Christian Non Fiction, Religion, Spirituality

24 pages, ebook

Published September 30, 2020

About the author

John Mark Comer is the New York Times bestselling author of Practicing the Way, Live No Lies, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, God Has a Name, and three more. His podcasts, John Mark Comer Teachings and Rule of Life, have been ranked on top religion and spirituality podcast charts in the U.S. and U.K.

He's also the founder of Practicing the Way, a simple, beautiful way to integrate spiritual formation into your church or small group. After serving as the pastor for teaching and vision at Bridgetown Church in Portland, Oregon, for nearly two decades, John Mark and his family now reside in California, where he serves as a teacher in residence at Vintage Church LA.

Reviews

[Austenn Akers · Rating 5 out of 5]

A hopeful take on how to live through life’s uncertainties

[Dan Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great little read. Speaks to the discipline of trusting God when things are uncertain, and this idea that when we aren't in control, we can trust God, who is in control (Something I struggle with, lol)

Food for thought:

"To clarify: Holy uncertainty doesn’t mean we don’t plan for the future. It just means we make our plans, but we let go of outcomes at an emotional level. We strategize and do our best, but we make peace with the fact that we’re not in control of what happens, and that’s okay.

As James put it: Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business, and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life?

You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” (James 4v13-15 NIV)

So make your plans. Diagram it all out. Get your life ready. But then set your plans down. Have a good laugh. Detach from outcomes. Tether yourself instead to God’s presence and peace. Breath. And take it one day at a time"

[Skye Gwynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick read and a grounding reminder of God's goodness.

[Amelia Sanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely recommend this one

[Lauren Welsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Mark comer has a lot of trademark statements that make its way into this little e-book. The stage theory was mentioned which I am a huge fan of. Overall some good nuggets.

[Jessica Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a planner by profession, this little book is probably a good reminder to keep coming back to. I wish I had read it when we were more in the midst of COVID, but it is a good reminder to hold things with holy uncertainty, even now when things have started to become a little more normal.

[Brodie Gron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy 24 page e-book. As always, great stuff from John Mark Comer.

[Heath · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not sure what it is about Comer, but reading him always slows me down.

This short e-book is a wonderful pastoral piece written to help us navigate CV19 with faith, hope, and love.

[Abigail · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick little read on uncertainty.

“Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardship as a pathway to peace.”

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

JMC is never not spitting im afraid

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

while a time capsule from the depths of covid, Comer is able to speak on timeless truth around uncertainty. here are my favorite quotes:

"Controlling people are not full of hope for God’s future, but rather live in a vicious cycle of planning for their future, followed by disappointment when their plans go belly up. (Disappointment, by the way, is generally a sign of misplaced hope. It’s an emotional signal from our body that’s telling us our hope was set on the wrong object.)"

"There were three invitations from God to Israel in the desert:
01. To camp around his presence and trust him to lead and guide them through the desert to Canaan.
02. To let his testing and teaching form them into people who were ready for the next chapter in their story.
03. To live gratefully one day at a time on manna (daily bread)."

"The beautiful, but terrifying, reality of free will is that we all get to choose our guide – be it God,[or others]. The invitation of God is to choose his Spirit as our guide and his people, the church, as our traveling companions."

"Apprentices of Jesus who develop his capacity for holy uncertainty still make plans, but they are free – at an emotional level – from the need for those plans to come to pass."

"'We mature by meeting life, just as God and nature designed it, and accepting there the invitations that beckon us ever deeper into the heart of life itself."' -Ronald Rolheiser (quoted in 'Sacred Fire')

"Holy uncertainty doesn’t mean we don’t plan for the future. It just means we make our plans, but we let go of outcomes at an emotional level. We strategize and do our best, but we make peace with the fact that we’re not in control of what happens, and that’s okay."

"As Eisenhower said after WW2, “In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”'

"Planning is a great way to prepare myself for the uncertainty of the future, so I respond, not react. But when I finish my scenario planning, all I can do is close the Evernote file, chuckle, and go have dinner with my family. I have no idea if any of it will even happen."

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ik ontdekte recentelijk pas een drietal overdenkingen die John Mark Comer gedurende de COVID-19 pandemie heeft geschreven. Ondanks dat we nu niet meer te midden van deze onzekere periode leven, blijven Comer’s lessen van belang: hoe kan je op een responsieve in plaats van reactieve manier het leven leven, waarbij je jezelf overgeeft aan Gods controle in plaats van zelf de controle in handen te willen houden? Aan de hand van het Bijbelverhaal over het volk Israël in de woestijn presenteert Comer een aantal belangrijke parallellen voor het leven ten tijde van onzekerheid:

1. Blijf in Gods aanwezigheid en vertrouw op Zijn leiding en voorziening;
2. Laat Gods beproevingen en lessen je vormen tot iemand die klaar is voor een nieuwe fase
3. Leef bewust en in dagelijkse dankbaarheid voor Zijn voorziening (manna)

[abireadsalot · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good little ebook filled with wisdom. I love John Mark Comer’s writing. This was written more for/in Covid times but it is definitely still applicable now.

Holy uncertainty is an interesting concept that in short just means surrender..or at least that’s what I understood! I also found the stage theory to be extremely interesting and insightful.

What do you do when your plans fail? What do you do before and after planning? Truth is you don’t know what will happen next, but you must trust the one who does. God is the guide! Follow him and surrender your life and plans to him. Take it one day at a time, after all he provides us with daily bread, not just a stash of bread.

“Tether yourself instead to God’s presence and peace.”

[Jaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Controlling people do not live with a deep trust and steady confidence in Gods goodness and involvement in their life. Rather, they are anxious and uptight and on edge… Controlling people are not full of hope for God’s future, rather live in a vicious cycle of planning their future, followed by disappointment when their plans go belly up.”

John Mark Comer does it again. This short book is powerful in diagnosing deep trust structures we have and point us back to God is good and Sovereign. Ultimately God’s presence is our guide through the fog of faith and uncertainty is the stage where we declare that we trust God and not ourselves

[Dawson Cumberland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poignant and promising, John Mark's little Ebook crafted in the midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic provides the spiritual 'point of order' we each need. As simple as it is to be tossed and thrown by the waves of our world's current tides, this book provides well-organized and example-driven course corrections that help you live a better faith life the minute you've finished the last sentence. Despite being an avid reader of John Mark Comer, I was surprised by just how impactful this installment was!

[Brooks Lemmon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great little manifesto of sorts for what it means to live as a Christian during the COVID pandemic. JMC writes about the idea of Holy Uncertainty and how we can embrace this as a lifestyle while all hell is breaking loose around us. This piece of writing was really great and I think I would have loved it even more if I had read it when it first came out several months ago as I had originally set out to do.

[Cassie Thornburg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sums up the beauty of the dark night of the soul and the lament, "God, things are really bad and dark and I don't see your hand at work, but I trust you." Probably the biggest thing God has taught me in my crisis of limitations in the last year and that is what living in holy uncertainty looks like.

[Montana Myer]

This is a quick, great, timely read for our cultural moment. We have to continually surrender control because faith, hope, and love can not coexist with control. We can plan all we want, but we have to let go of outcomes and live in obedience in the now. Live in the Lord’s presence now, take each day as it comes.

[Eric Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy uncertainty is a powerful concept in today's age where control and future focus is rampant across all stages of life.

This book helps bring awareness, exposes our need for Gods guidance, and helps us make a choice to trust in God so that faith, hope, and love acts in God's lens rather than in the humans lens

[Dominika Bolgáčová · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Apprentices of Jesus who develop his capacity for holy uncertainty still make plans, but they are free – at an emotional level – from the need for those plans to come to pass. They don’t need to know what will happen, or not happen, or how long it will all take, because they are happy in God.”

✨✨✨✨

[Elisaveta Ilieva · Rating 4 out of 5]

“To clarify: Holy uncertainty doesn't mean we don't plan for the future. It just means we make our plans, but we let go of outcomes at an emotional level.
We strategize and do our best, but we make peace with the fact that we're not in control of what happens, and that's okay.”

Feels really good to know.

[Kaya ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read from John Mark Comer written during 2020 in the midst of COVID. A lot of it referenced these events (honestly, it’s still too soon to talk about that time in my opinion haha), but it’s still applicable outside of this context.

I’d recommend this especially if you’re facing something uncertain or just want to let go and surrender control more in your life.

[Kayla Hollatz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read as its only 24 pages long but it offers thoughtful questions and concepts for reflection during the COVID pandemic. His writing feels like an understanding but super knowledgeable friend.

[Kendall · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Holy uncertainty is when we make peace with the fact that we are not in control of what happens." God is our guide, not the map!!! We have to learn to live with a very loose grip on our plans and more importantly the outcome of them!!! go read this 30 page book by JMC

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short read of how to approach transitions and times of certainty in a way that reflects trust in God, even when we’re unsure! Much of the book is woven through the example of COVID but is still very applicable to any and every situation in which we have to trust God to be our guide.

[Britney · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick read with substantial, imperative take aways on living in holy uncertainty. Comer never fails to provide a grounding perspective that brings us back to God’s word in the midst of the chaos of our world.

[Luke Durbin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always have time for what JMC has to say. This is a quick read. It's written for 2020 but will be applicable in any time of uncertainty. Be encouraged. We can make the most of this time.

[Chelsea Tademy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short read, but gooood!

[Brett Leyde · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short but jam packed.

[Katie Speer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick, sweet, redemptive read. A gut-punch reminder and a message of grace all in one. A 2020 must-read!!!