When You Don’t Know What’s Next
I still remember March 2020 like it was yesterday.
Only three months earlier I had become the lead pastor of ACAC. Following a man who had successfully lead for 36 years. The plan was crystal clear. My calendar was packed with meetings, my schedule mapped out for months, and I was riding the wave of excitement that comes with a new chapter. Everything felt certain.
Then COVID hit. Within 48 hours, everything shut down. Every plan. Every meeting. Every strategy session. Gone.
And I remember sitting there thinking, "How do I lead when I don't even know what's next?"
Maybe you've felt that way too. Not necessarily about a pandemic, but about something. A relationship that's uncertain. A job that feels unstable. A health diagnosis that came out of nowhere. A future that used to feel clear but now feels foggy.
Here's what I've learned... we're wired for certainty. Everything in us craves it. We build our entire lives around trying to control, predict, and manage what's coming next. We have apps that predict the weather two weeks out, retirement calculators that tell us how much we need to save down to the dollar, and GPS systems that reroute us around traffic before we even hit it and tell us within a minute of when we’ll arrive.
We need to know. And when we don't, it steals our joy.
But what if joy isn't found in knowing what's next? What if it's found in knowing Who's next to you?
A Letter That Changes Everything
I've been spending time in Paul's letter to the Philippians lately, and it's really been impactful. In fact, we’re going through this letter at our church together over the next 10 weeks. As we do, I want to share with you what we’ve been learning from a man who had every reason to be anxious, uncertain, and joyless, but somehow found a deep, real, and unshakable joy in the midst of his chaos.
Paul wrote this letter from a Roman prison, chained to a guard 24/7, not knowing if he'd be executed or released. His future was completely uncertain. And yet, in just four chapters, he uses the words "joy" or "rejoice" 16 times. That's once every seven verses.
Think about that. The most joyful letter in the New Testament was written from a prison cell by a man who didn't know if he'd live or die.
How is that even possible?
3 Anchors When the Future Is Foggy
As I’ve studied Paul's opening words to the Philippians, three things stood out to me. Three anchors that held him steady when everything around him was uncertain and three anchors I believe can hold you steady.
First, Paul anchored himself in his identity, not his circumstances.
Right out of the gate, Paul calls himself a "slave of Christ Jesus." Now, that word hits different for us. We hear "slave" and immediately think of oppression and bondage. Understandably, based on our nation’s history. But for Paul, this was the highest honor he could claim. He was saying, "I belong completely to Jesus. His will is my will. He owns me."
Here's what's wild though... Paul is literally chained to a Roman guard when he writes this, but he doesn't call himself a slave of Rome. He calls himself a slave of Jesus. Rome could chain his body, but they couldn't touch his identity.
When the future is foggy, anchor yourself in what you know. You may not know what this year holds, but you know whose you are. And that doesn't change just because your circumstances do.
Second, Paul shifted his focus from his problems to God's work in others.
Listen to how he starts this letter: "Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy."
Put yourself in Paul's shoes for a second. You're in prison. Chained. Uncertain about your future. You have every reason to be consumed with your own situation. But Paul's first thought isn't about himself… it's thankfulness for the Philippians.
That's where his joy comes from. Not from his circumstances changing, but from his focus shifting. He stops looking inward at his own problems and starts looking outward at what God is doing in the lives of others.
Maybe that's your first step toward finding joy this year. Stop obsessing over what you can't control and start celebrating what God is doing around you.
Third, Paul anchored himself in God's faithfulness, not his feelings.
Then Paul writes this line that changes everything: "I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns."
Not "I hope." Not "I think." Not even "I believe." I am certain.
He's not saying, "I'm certain I'll be released from prison." He's not saying, "I'm certain everything will work out the way I want."
He's saying, "I'm certain of God's faithfulness."
Paul's certainty isn't in his circumstances getting better. It's in God's character remaining consistent. Because circumstances constantly change. Health fails. Jobs disappear. Relationships fall apart. Plans crumble. But God's faithfulness never changes.
Your feelings are real, but they're not reliable. Some days you'll feel close to God. Some days you won't. Some days you'll feel certain. Some days you won't. But God's faithfulness isn't dependent on your feelings. He's finishing what He started in you because He's faithful.
Joy in the Waiting
Having faith isn’t about having all the answers. Having faith means learning to say "even if."
Even if I don't know what's next... I can have joy.
Even if my plans fall apart... I can have peace.
Even if I can't control my circumstances... I can trust the One who does.
This isn't just good theology. This is Paul's life. He's not writing this from a comfortable place theorizing about trusting God. He's writing this from chains, demonstrating what it actually looks like.
The Philippians didn't just hear Paul's words… they saw his life backing them up. And that made all the difference.
You can ignore good advice. But you can't ignore a life that proves it works.
What's Your "Even If"?
So let me ask you... what's your "even if" right now? What's the uncertainty that keeps you up at night? What's the question you can't answer? What's the future you can't see?
Paul would say to you what he said to the Philippians… anchor yourself in what you know.
You know who you belong to. You're His.
You know God's character. He's faithful to finish what He starts.
You know there's a day coming when Jesus returns, and it will all make sense.
In the meantime? Live like Paul lived. Focus on what matters. Choose joy not because your circumstances changed, but because your perspective did. Trust God's faithfulness more than your feelings.
Because joy isn't found in knowing what's next. Joy is found in knowing Who's next to you.
Over the next several weeks, I'll be sharing more insights as we walk through Philippians. I'm learning right alongside you. If this resonates with you, I'd love to hear your thoughts, feel free to reach out.
Keep looking up,
Pastor Alan is the lead pastor of Allegheny Center Alliance Church. To find out more about ACAC, go here.
