Ahhh…new year. Clean slate. New beginning. Twelve months of potential.

But not everyone is optimistic about the future. Some say that if the past is any indication, we’re in for big trouble in 2018.

Newspaper headlines from 2017 brimmed with accounts of disasters. We witnessed man-made disasters such as the Chennai oil spill in February. We watched as Hurricanes Irma and Harvey unleashed their fury. Wildfires ravaged California. Middle East tensions escalated. And North Korea has been making its presence known on the world stage.

The economic picture is gloomy, too. An out-of-control national deficit, combined with lower donations to charities have many worried. Aid workers cite “donor fatigue” in describing reduced giving to help victims of natural disasters around the world.

All in all, the baby new year has its work cut out for it.

Even as adults struggle with their response to uncertainties, our children and grandchildren are watching us. And they’re wondering…is our faith real? Do we trust God only in the good times? Is the future bleak because God is no longer in control?

How we respond to our circumstances—good and bad, certain and uncertain—speaks volumes to the children who watch us. If we really believe God is sovereign, and that He loves His children, we will trust Him for each moment.

God does not want His children—adults or little ones—to obsess about the future. He wants us to live in such a way that we will be prepared for the future by having dealt with our past. Unless the sin of our past has been paid for by the only sacrifice God deemed acceptable – His Son, Jesus Christ – the future will continue to be a source of fear.

No one knows the details of what the future holds. But we do know who holds the future…and who holds us.

And that’s enough for me. How about you?

What helps you face the uncertainty of 2018?