What Happens Next
This is a rare guest post. It is written by Daniel Ross who is a Sophomore at FHU and interning this summer at Pulaski St in Lawrenceburg, TN
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“So, what happens next?” This is a common question I have begun to hear on social media as well as from other friends in my life. It seems as if 2020 was doomed from the get-go. If you think about it, this year has had a little bit of everything, and none of it seems to be good. International tensions, death of a highly influential figure, a worldwide pandemic that led to cancellation of all events and a near- global lockdown, and increasing friction in the diverse population of our own country. Oh, and who can forget giant insects that have the word “murder” in front of them and how millions of cicadas coming up out of the ground every seventeen years just happens to align with the year 2020? It is only June. We are only halfway through what I believe I can confidently say, even though I have only lived nineteen years on this earth, is one of the craziest years ever.
“So, what happens next?” This question comes with a lot of uncertainty, helplessness, and some sarcasm. The truth is that no one knows what happens next. No one has ever known what was next, and no one will ever know. We feel uncertain about and unprepared for whatever is about to happen next. We feel helpless and begin to look everywhere we can to see if anyone knows what is going to happen next. We speculate, assume, and draw far-reaching conclusions of what is coming. But no one knows. For some people, they have given up. They jokingly ask this question as if to say, “I mean, what could be worse than the first six months?”
“So, what happens next?” We get it. We want to be able to answer this question, and we understand that we can’t. Will we ever stop asking that question? Will we ever be okay with what is happening? Will the anxiety of this world ever stop gnawing at us? The disheartening but true answer is no. This question will always be asked. Humans will always have an issue with what is occurring in their lives. As my mom stressed to me when I was a child, “You cannot please everyone, son. So, make the correct decisions that glorify God, not the decisions that others will want you to make.” Lastly, the anxiety of the world will never stop gnawing at us, troubling us, or trying to cause us to stumble. It is the world we are talking about, after all.
“So, what happens next?” How do we find peace of mind? How do we accept the fact that we will never know the answer to this question? Let me tell you. We worship the one and true God who just happens to be, not by chance, but by His divine power, the One who knows what happens next. Not only does He know, but He controls what happens next. This same God loves you and cares for you. He understands that the world can get crazy; He knew 2020 would be the way it is. This fact does not change the way He loves and cares for us.
Lean on the everlasting arms, truthfully trust in Him, and obey Him. If you do these things, you will find your peace of mind. “casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you.” I Peter 5:7
-Daniel Ross