Uncertainty is a Blessing

The economy is recovering, unemployment is low, and the stock market is on fire. Yet, people are angsty. The border is a mess, inner city crime is out of control and everything is more expensive. People are divided over everything, including Taylor Swift.

Things feel uncertain and that’s makes us anxious. But, uncertainty can often be a blessing. Let me explain.

This country was built on courage. But things weren’t always that confident, that certain. See, it was the uncertainty that gave us the courage to trounce the Brits in the funny hats.

But ever since we sent them packing we got swagger as a country. It was like we collectively beat up the class bully on the playground in third grade. We started to feel like Alabama football fans back when Nick Saban was still coaching. Overconfident, albeit justified.  

As a result of this overconfidence, we’ve come to demand certainty in all things. Like Kansas City demands winning the NFL Super Bowl.

There are times when demanding certainty is entirely reasonable.

• When your oncologist is testing the margins of a tumor she just removed.

• When your accountant says your tax return is accurate.

• When your pilot says your flight has been cleared for landing.

These are appropriate times to demand certainty. Or, at least to demand that as many variables have been removed as humanly possible.

If the pandemic era taught us anything, it’s that life is uncertain. Everything is fluid. Everything. Our health. Our livelihood. Our family. Our peace of mind. It’s all fluid, whether you got the jab or not.

First time reading? Sign up here

But, that uncertainty was a gift, of sorts. An opportunity to be courageous in the midst of tremendous uncertainty. Like a scene out of a classic, underdog movie like Rocky or Rudy. Everyone loves these kinds of stories where the main character is invincible.

But we aren’t invincible. And we aren’t in control of anything. The greatest generation was born in an era of tremendous uncertainty. Everything was fluid in the world and nobody was invincible.

They knew better than to be overconfident. They knew that life was fleeting. That they were extremely vulnerable, if not downright defenseless. Death was more frequent back then. And, they died of things that today send us to the 24-hour Urgent Care Center after we finish eating dinner.

Yet the greatest generation demonstrated tremendous courage in the most dire of circumstances. Their courage made them certain about the right things.

Certain that we should respond in-kind after Pearl Harbor. Certain that, in 1941, we should enter the European Theater.

A Gallup poll taken days after the US formally declared war found that 97% of Americans were in support of the war. Imagine that happening today. We can’t.

Part of what gave the greatest generation the ability to walk boldly through the valley of the shadow of death, was faith. Their faith in a higher power, a power greater than themselves.

But today, things are different. According to Gallup, our membership in houses of worship continued to decline last year, dropping below 50% for the first time in Gallup’s eight-decade trend.

I find these kinds of statistics surprising. Remember the incredible lack of confidence we all felt, just a short 48 months ago?

When toilet-paper and Chardonnay were in short supply. When you couldn’t go anywhere without that damn mask. When schools, restaurants and houses of worship were closed.

Yet after this life-threatening experience, we’ve never been more overconfident. We’ve never been more arrogant about our understanding of things for which we know so little.

So do you think it’s fair to suggest that our “enlightened“ lack of faith is proof that we’ve lost our courage to be uncertain? I do.

See, having a faith life takes courage. Courage to admit we aren’t in control. Courage to believe that there is something bigger than ourselves. Courage to believe that we do not have all the answers in life. Courage to embrace uncertainty.

But, in our modern, enlightened, self-certain state of mind, we don’t wanna run the risk of being wrong. As if the possibility of being wrong outweighs the reward of being right. 

Look I know that faith is completely irrational. I know that our common sense filter can go into hyperdrive when we begin to ponder the great questions of the universe. That we struggle with the idea that there really is a “wheel in the sky.” I get it.  

But there are lots of things I don’t understand, yet I submit to them with blind faith. 

• I don’t understand how my microwave works. But I have faith it will turn raw bacon into something truly divine. 

• I don’t understand how the internet works. But, I let it control nearly every aspect of my life.

• And, I don’t understand how my toilet works. But……okay, you get the point.   

Given the vastness of the world, it’s safe to assume that we only have a tiny fraction of knowledge on any subject. And that lack of knowledge can make us feel anxious and uncertain. But, the answer isn’t to dig in. The answer isn’t to become more arrogant about our understanding of things for which we know so little.

The answer is to be courageous enough to see the uncertainty as the incredible blessing that makes us feel truly alive. The answer is to re-affirm that we aren’t in control of anything. The answer is to embrace the uncertainty.

Let’s be courageous enough to live out the rest of our lives embracing the blessing of uncertainty.

Before you go, could you do me a huge favor and share this story with a few friends? I’m trying to make some new friends and I need your help. Or share it on a bathroom wall. Just share it anywhere you can. It helps a lot. I’d be incredibly grateful.