I really don't like uncertainty.

It makes me anxious when I don't know what is going on and where things are headed.  

There are times when we seem to go through one episode after another of incredible unexpected moments and events.  Slowing our progress down to a snail's pace.

It's a struggle.  A struggle to move forward and feel momentum.  A struggle to pick ourselves up when we feel like these moments keep knocking us down.  

That is uncertainty - doubt really, is so hard to deal with. It's hard to handle. It feels like the world is crashing in on us. For so many, it freezes us where we are. We can't move forward and we can't get through to do the things that we are called to. 

In the book of Matthew, as Jesus meets his disciples in person for the last time before he ascends into heaven, he gives some last, focused and powerful instructions.  It's what Jesus followers have termed the great commission.  

But.  

Before Jesus opens his mouth to speak, the disciples begin worshipping him and then the line no one expects...

"When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted."

Matthew 28:17

But some doubted...

I don't know how, but they doubted. They struggled to see the big picture. The struggled to see where this good news of salvation was going. The uncertainty of a reality that they couldn't grasp froze them in their tracks. 

What amazes me is that even in their current uncertainty, their doubt, all the disciples found themselves in full accord to bring worship and praise to the risen Lord. That is how incredible Jesus was. It reminds me of the passage in Mark 8 when Jesus tells his disciples:

"I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way..."

Mark 8:2-3a

They were so in-tuned with his message, with the gospel of grace, that they couldn't pull themselves away even to eat. They revelled in his goodness and his compassion for them. They were so engaged and focused!

The disciples in this moment on that hill, seeing a risen Jesus, could do nothing but worship. Even in their doubt, they could do nothing but revel in his wonderful presence. 

More than that, even in their doubt Jesus still calls them to the greatest adventure. They are called to the great commission!

He doesn't miss a beat. He doesn't cave to their uncertainties and he doesn't let them collapse under them either. He is constant and focused on the work still to be done to bring the gospel of grace and love to the world. 

I see these two small pieces of larger stories and I can't help but ask the question, "am I so engrossed in his being and the call that he has for me that I can move past my doubts?"

Can I see past my uncertainties and doubts and come to a place of trust? 

That is what it is all about, trust! Can I trust him to help me move past the hardships of this life and see me through to the eternity he promised?

As the disciples worshipped on that hill unfettered, I too can't be held back from lifting my heart to the one that brought me from death to life; that proved himself over and over again to me, not just in the history of redemption but in my own personal walk with him. He has shown himself to be a promise keeper, to support and hear my cries for help. He has demonstrated over and over again just from his presence in my life, the love and compassion he has for me. 

Yes, I can trust him. 

In the uncertainty he shows himself true. He will lead us through the doubts to accomplish the call that he has for us. We simply need to trust.