PRESIDENT'S ESSAY
Uncertainty
POSTED
March 20, 2020

My daughter, MargaretAnn, posted these Lenten meditations on the coronavirus on Instagram today.

uncertainty is a frightening thing. before i left campus unexpectedly to come home, my boss sat me down and reminded me that this is the perfect time to grow. it’s when things are difficult and unsettling and painful that we learn who we are and who we are not.

the most striking thing that i’ve noticed over the past few weeks is how many of us live under the illusion that we have some control over our days. anxiety (especially widely shared anxiety) strips us all of our masks. we are all children dressed as adults, and when we are afraid many of us lose that disguise. we want to be comforted. to be assured that everything will be okay. to put the pieces back together on our own.

so when i think about josh telling me to use this time to grow, i think about that. my frantic need for control. clinging to things that aren’t mine to hold. i think about the refrain in ecclesiastes: all is vapor, and grasping for the wind. i think about how i respond to not knowing.

my hope and prayer is that the Lord uses these moments to teach me – to teach us – that faith is not just trusting God to order our steps. faith is living in a world of uncertainty without demanding answers. faith is crying out in fear and pain, pleading for redemption, while remembering that we are but dust, and to dust we shall return.

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