How to keep your confidence when life doesn’t make sense (I don’t know that, but I do know this!)

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Today, I’m over at Proverbs 31 talking about trusting God even when we don’t understand what He’s doing. You can read that devotion  here.  But  first, I’d like to tell you about a precious little boy who taught me a priceless lesson…

Years ago, I volunteered in my son’s kindergarten classroom as a “reading assistant.”

Armed with a few brightly colored books and two baby bear chairs, I sat in the hallway with a little learner and a load of patience. Together, we practiced those skills that turn rookies into readers.

We studied sight words and reviewed phonics. We deciphered sounds and strung together sentences. And when those words on the page turned into spoken stories, we shared squeals and claps, high fives and hoorays.

I enjoyed all the students, but I had a quiet affinity for one little learner. He was a wiggly boy with a mop of unruly hair and a contagious grin. And when it was his turn to join me in the hallway, he skipped to my side as if he’d just won a marvelous prize.

“I’ve been waiting ALLLLLLLL day to see you!!” he’d exclaim with a happy hug. Then, when he slid into that little chair, he proceeded to fill the gap between us with cheerful chatter.

He boasted about his latest recess adventure or described the cool rock he’d found on his walk to school. He chronicled the antics of the funny squirrel he’d spotted on the playground or he recounted every detail of the backyard baseball game he’d played last night.

When I shifted his focus to the task at hand, he always exhaled a compliant sigh and stared earnestly at the letters on the open page between us.

“Can you read these words to me? I asked, pointing to a simple series of picture clues with bold-print letters beside them.

SHIP.   SHARK.  SHIRT.  SHOE

“Hmmmm…..” My student scrunched his eyebrows together and studied the writing.

 “I don’t know those words,” he admitted.  “But I do know how to jump on one foot!  Wanna watch me?”

Instantly, a crooked smile spread across his face, and he leaped up and began hopping around the hallway on a wobbly foot.

I swallowed a giggle and lured him back to our lesson.

However, each time we flipped the page and surveyed a set of new words, his answer was much the same.

“I don’t know what that says, but I do know how to whistle! Wanna hear?”

“I don’t know how to read that, but I do know how to count to ten in Spanish!  Wanna see?”

Reading didn’t come easy for this precious pupil, but he rarely grew discouraged as he pressed through the muddled middle. 

Unlike many of the other students with whom I worked, Mr. Enthusiasm didn’t relinquish his confidence when the words on the page didn’t make any sense or the sentences were just too hard to understand.

He just kept showing up in the hallway and doing his best, admitting what he didn’t know and declaring what he did.

“I can’t read that word, but I can  tie my shoe…”

“I can’t figure out that sentence, but I can wiggle my tooth…”

“I can’t finish this story, but I can sing this song….”

And then one day, this small boy with giant exuberance leaped out of that baby bear chair and yelped, “I can read a book!”

It’s been years since I lingered in the hallway with that endearing kindergartner, but this morning as I read Psalm 27, I recognized a familiar pattern in King David’s honest words.

I don’t know that, but I do know this…

Of course, King David wasn’t sitting outside of a kindergarten classroom when he wrote this beloved sliver of scripture; the text implies he was standing in a season of struggle.  Verses 2 and 3 mention trouble from enemies, advances from adversaries, and attacks from violent men.

I’m sure the hardship David was enduring didn’t make much sense from his earth-bound view. Most likely, his future looked cloudy and God’s plans looked uncertain. I’m guessing this man after God’s own heart was duly confused about what God was doing and why.

It would have been easy for King David to let his circumstances weaken his worship or to allow his struggles to pillage his praise. But when we read the declarations that begin and end this Psalm, we discover that David didn’t let his questions didn’t sabotage his confidence.

Instead,  David’s words sound strangely like those of a joyful kindergartener I once knew—“I don’t know that, but I do know this!”

I can picture David smiling (or maybe even hopping happily on one foot) as he flanked his psalm with these bold proclamations:

“The Lord is my light and my salvation—
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
    of whom shall I be afraid? (v 1)

I remain confident of this:
    I will see the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living.” (v 13)

David didn’t deny the struggle or make light of his muddle; he simply showed up in prayer and persevered in hope. He admitted what he didn’t know and he proclaimed what he did.

David couldn’t understand God’s mysterious ways, but he continued to give him praise. Because what David did know about God was far more powerful than what he didn’t.

David knew God was with him and for him.

He knew God was good and gracious.

He knew God was both his rescuer and his refuge.

When David couldn’t decipher what God was doing, he could still declare who he knew God to be.

And, friends, we can do the same!

Thanks for taking time to linger with us here today.  Let us know in the comments how we can pray for you right now, and, if you need  help turning your prayers into praise, grab a copy of my free printable, “Praise Prompts.” It’s filled with truth to remind you who God is even when you don’t understand what He’s doing.

Click on the link below to download one for yourself or for a friend.

Praise Prompts