Uncertainty can be unnerving, especially uncertainty about our future.
Although we know that tomorrow is not guaranteed, we live with the common illusion that we maintain some control of our future.
But both the worst and best surprises in life remind us that we don’t know what’s next. Unforeseen events often wake us up to the truth of our raw ignorance—we don’t know tomorrow. When we come face-to-face with our uncertainty about the future, we often feel overwhelmed by it—overwhelmed, and afraid.
Yet all over the Bible we read, “do not be afraid”—God’s desire for his people is that we would have peace (John 14:27). So how can we face the future unafraid? How do we handle our fear of the future?
How Psalm 23 Equips Us to Handle Our Fear of the Future
Let’s go to an old, familiar place. Many people over many centuries visited this haven and left with their souls strengthened. It may be one of the most well-trod Scriptures in all the Bible, but this place never loses its charm, nor power. Its popularity doesn’t diminish anyone’s desire to visit. The place is Psalm 23.
In this old resting place, the Lord does something wonderful for those who have put their trust in him (2 Corinthians 1:20). Here, the Lord sets our expectations for the future. As we sit with Psalm 23, he calms our frightened souls. The wind of God’s Word blows through our anxious hearts and helps us breathe freely again as we look ahead.
As we listen to the Lord’s words to us in Psalm 23, the Holy Spirit reframes our vision of the future.
When we put our faith in Christ, God slipped his hand into ours. Promises like Psalm 23 became ours. As we hear God’s promises, they help us tighten our grip on God’s hand in trust and give us courage to walk on with him into the darkness of the future. For he, and his Word have become our light (Psalm 119:105; John 8:12).
We can be sure of the promises God makes to us. We can rest our hope in their fulfillment, which is certain.
Here are five expectations God sets in Psalm 23 for anyone who has put their faith in Jesus Christ, which equip us to face our fear of the future.
1. We Can Expect God to Lead Us
The first thing we can expect if we belong to Jesus Christ, is for the Lord to lead us.
Psalm 23:1 says, “the Lord is my shepherd…” The role of a shepherd is to lead his sheep. He charts the course for his sheep, and in his mind are the plans for the path they will take. The sheep don’t know where they are going—and neither do we! But our Shepherd knows the way. Well, he is the way (John 14:6). So long as we are at his side, the way is clear. We go where he leads, and he promises to lead us with his Word and his Spirit (Romans 8:14; Galatians 5:18). He tells us, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27 ESV).
We can expect Jesus to lead us in the way that we should go. In fact, he is leading us, right now, for Psalm 23 tells us, “The Lord is your shepherd”—present tense.
The future may be unclear to us, but it is clear to our Savior, Jesus. He knows the way (Job 23:9-10) and is leading us in it. We do not have to chart our own way or know where we are headed. He does.
The stretch of years
Which wind ahead, so dim
To our imperfect vision,
Are clear to God.[1]
Our shepherd is the Good Shepherd. He has a gentle heart, and he cherishes each of his sheep so deeply that he laid his life down for us (John 10:11; Matthew 11:28-30). So, we expect the Lord to lead us in the plans he has for us, and to do so out of his great love for us.
2. We Can Expect God to Care for Us
The second thing we can expect for our future is that God will attend to our needs—even soul-deep needs.
When we look to the future, we often take inventory of our needs and responsibilities and then calculate how much energy they will require. Too often our conclusion is, I won’t have enough.
We anticipate weariness. We wonder how long we can bear up under our present weaknesses. We know that trouble will visit us in many forms (Job 5:7). And so, we fear that we will not have what we need.
But Psalm 23 manages our expectations with this reminder; “he makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul” (Psalm 23:2-3 NIV).
The Good Shepherd leads his sheep to green pastures when they need food. He leads them by still waters they can drink deep from without fear, and he also cares for their souls.
When our responsibilities hound us, the Lord will lead us into rest. When we’re emotionally emptied by extroverted exertion, he will lead us to drink deep from his well of living water (John 4:10). When our hearts break, he will be there to bind us up and restore our souls (Psalm 147:3).
We can expect the Lord to care for us.
3. We Can Expect God to Lead Us to Places We Don’t Want to Go
The third thing we can expect for our future is for Jesus to lead us into “the valley.”
Psalm 23 sets realistic expectations for us, as the fourth verse indicates that we can expect suffering when it says: “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me” (Psalm 23:4 NIV).
Remember that this precious psalm begins with “the Lord is my shepherd” (emphasis mine). So, if we are walking into a valley, our Shepherd has led us there. There, in the valley, we need not fear any evil, for the Shepherd is with us.
So much could be said here, but let’s focus on this one point: Psalm 23 sets the expectation for us that Jesus, our loving, gentle Good Shepherd, will lead us into the “valley of the shadow of death” (KJV)—that is a place none of us would choose to travel if we were in charge.
If we expect Jesus to only lead us to pleasant places, a rude awakening awaits us. Jesus doesn’t promise to lead us only to pleasant places.
Sometimes he will lead us into relationships, circumstances, places, or troubles that feel to us like death. In such places, our hearts may, like the Apostle Paul’s, “despair of life itself” (2 Corinthians 1:8 ESV). But here, in these places, the Lord teaches us to “rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead” (2 Corinthians 1:9 ESV).
When the awfullest of times are upon us, we often cave to the temptation that God has left, disregarded, and abandoned us, but Psalm 23 promises us otherwise. Jesus is there with us. Our Lord does not lead us to this valley and leave. He walks through this valley with us.
Although at first this may be difficult to accept, it will be a welcomed truth when we stand on the brink of the valley. Have I made a mistake? Is God still with me?
Our trembling can dissolve into trust when we remember that there has been no mistake. Jesus leads us to and through the valley, all the while guarding us from evil. This is part of his way, and we have his hand to hold for every step.
4. We Can Expect God to Pursue Us with Goodness and Mercy Every Day
The fourth thing we can expect for our future is for God to pursue us with his goodness and mercy.
Psalm 23 sets our anxious hearts at ease with these words: “Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life…” (Psalm 23:6 NIV), or as the NLT puts it, “Surely your goodness and love will pursue me all the days of my life…” (emphasis mine).
As we look to the future, we have no idea what our days may hold. Tomorrow is a mystery. But the Bible tells us that there is a gift we enjoy every day that we live, and it cannot be taken away from us: the goodness and love of the Lord. His goodness and love will pursue us.
When the Bible says, “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8 NIV), it teaches us that God’s goodness is not just something we know or believe; it is something we even experience with our senses! The goodness of the Lord comes to us in many forms.
Those of us who belong to Jesus by faith wake up every day of our lives to unopened gifts that flow from God’s affectionate heart toward us—like the kind word of a friend, sunshine outside, or an especially enjoyable meal.
We roll out of bed every day to be met with God’s love—God’s love instead of his punishment—when into our minds rush all our worst offenses, deepest regrets, and present failures.
We walk out the door each day and behind us trails God’s kind intentions, ready to surprise us throughout the day with expressions of his love.
If we are honest, we cannot guarantee anything that we anticipate in the coming days. Our foresight may be utterly inaccurate. But we can be sure of one thing every day. Every day, God will pursue us with goodness and mercy.
5. We Can Expect to Have Hope Every Day
The fifth thing we can expect for our future is hope—a hope that cannot be taken from us, that will never disappoint (1 Peter 1:3-4).
Though I don’t know what the days ahead will look like for you, any more than you do, some things are certain for us all. We will face things that disappoint us. We will face things that tempt us to despair. We will face things that discourage us. And yet, if we have a relationship with Jesus Christ by faith—no matter how dark life gets—we always have hope.
Psalm 23 ends like this, “and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23:6 NIV).
We wake up to a promise from God every day—one that no person or circumstance can take away from us (Romans 8:38-39). It’s the promise of eternal life, of a heavenly home that awaits us (Romans 6:23; John 14:2-3). The place itself is not our hope, just as a newlywed’s first apartment isn’t their hope. Rather, it’s the promised happily ever after that is our hope—happily together with the Lord. Eternal life is about living in the fullness of God’s presence for eternity (John 17:3).
Friend, life may get terribly hard. We may suffer terrible wounds. Our souls may wade through deep rivers of sorrow. But though the road before us is dark and may prove hard to walk, it has an end! This life ends, and it ends in a beautiful place for those of us who know Jesus. The destination for us, however tough the journey, is good.
At the end of the future we have yet to live is a home in heaven that Jesus will welcome us into (John 14), where God will wipe away every tear from each of our eyes and “death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore” (Revelation 21:4 ESV). No one can take that hope from us because God, who never lies (Titus 1:2 ESV), has promised it to us.
We can expect to have hope every day of this life because we can be certain of the eternal life that awaits us.
Face Your Fear of the Future by Taking the Hand of Jesus
So, with fearful hearts we came to Psalm 23, racked with anxiety over our futures. Truly our life is a series of steps into the darkness—the great unknown, the uncharted world of the future that we all fear and long to see clearly.
Indeed, “the stretch of years that wind ahead [are] so dim to our imperfect vision.”[2] But take heart, friend,
Go out into the darkness and
put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light
and safer than a known way.[3]
We can be sure that no matter what our futures hold, Jesus will lead us into the future he has planned for each of us. He will care for all our needs. And although Jesus may lead us into difficult places, he will protect us and walk with us always. Jesus will pursue us with goodness and love every day that we live, and Jesus will welcome us into our eternal home at the end of our lives.
May we manage our expectations of the future with the powerful promises God makes to us in Psalm 23. And may faith in his goodness toward us who belong to Jesus propel us into the future unafraid.
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Source
[1] “The Gate of the Year” Poem by Minnie Louise Haskins, written in 1908 and published in 1912.
[2] “The Gate of the Year” Poem by Minnie Louise Haskins.
[3] “The Gate of the Year” Poem by Minnie Louise Haskins.