For All We Don't Know, Here's What We Still Do Know

The unknowns feel as though they're ruling the day right now.

Or, at the very least, they feel like a bunch of bullies, pushing their way to the head of the life line.

We don't know what day-to-day life is going to look like.
We don't know what's going to be open, closed, happening, or cancelled.
We don't know if trips or events or celebrations we've had planned for a long time are going to be wiped out in a matter of minutes.
We don't know how close the virus is going to get to us.
We don't know what's going to being in short supply next.
We don't know what plans for the future are safe to make.

And maybe one of the most unsettling things we don't know is how long we're not going to know all this.

It's the open-endedness that I think makes this crisis so weighty. I can usually deal in okayish fashion with a challenging season if I feel like I have some idea of how and when it's going to end. But that how and that when feel like the leaders of the unknown parade at the moment.

Yet for all we don't know, here's what we do still know.

We know that learning can happen in lots of different ways and places.

We know that getting outside and moving around are always good ideas.

We know kindness is disease-resistant.

We know laughter does not have to wait until there's nothing unfunny going on.

We know having a home to be in is a privilege.

We know patience is a skill we can get better at with practice.

We know the big picture is made up of a lot of little pieces that all have to be fit together before they make sense.

We know doing what's best for others often comes at a sacrifice to ourselves.

We know encouragement is not a one-time deposit but a ongoing investment.

We know right now is the perfect time to tell our people we love them, even though we hope with all our hearts they already know it full well.

And when the fog of doubt closes in again, we strain our eyes to see this guiding truth: God knows where we are, and He is always taking us somewhere worth going.

"He knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, 

I will come forth as gold" (Job 23:10).