You Don’t Have to Have It All Figured Out

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” — Proverbs 3:5

Have you ever noticed how uncomfortable it can feel when you don’t know what’s going to happen next?

As adults, we want answers. We want the plan. We want to know how things are going to work out before we can relax.

And our children can feel the same way.

They may not be worried about bills, careers, or everything we carry as adults, but their worries are still real to them.

Will I make friends?
What if I get the answer wrong?
What if something changes?
What if I don’t know what to do?

That’s why one of the greatest lessons we can begin teaching our children is this:

You don’t have to have it all figured out to trust God.

Proverbs 3:5 tells us to trust in the Lord with all our heart and not to lean on our own understanding.

In other words, there are going to be things we simply don't understand.

And that's okay.

God isn't asking us to understand everything before we trust Him. He's asking us to trust Him even when we don't understand.

When You Don't Know, Trust God

Sometimes we make trusting God harder than it has to be.

We think we need to have a certain feeling. We think we need all the answers. We think we need to see how everything is going to work out.

But trusting God can start with something as simple as saying:

“God, I don't know what to do, but I know You do.”

That's something our children can learn, too.

When they're nervous — trust God.

When something changes — trust God.

When they don't understand — trust God.

When things don't go the way they wanted — trust God.

Trust doesn't mean everything will always happen the way we want it to. It means we can believe that God is still with us, still loves us, and can guide us through whatever comes next.

Teach Them Where to Take Their Worries

As parents and caregivers, our first instinct may be to fix everything for our children.

But we won't always be able to.

There will be situations we can't change, questions we can't immediately answer, and moments when our children will have to walk through something difficult.

What we can do is teach them where to go when those moments come.

Teach them to pray.

Teach them to talk to God about what's bothering them.

Teach them that they don't have to carry every worry around all day.

And most importantly, let them see you trusting God, too.

They need to hear us say sometimes:

“I don't know how this is going to work out either, but we're going to pray about it and trust God.”

That teaches them that faith isn't about having all the answers.

Faith is knowing Who to trust when you don't.

This Week's Encouragement 💛

Take a moment this week and ask your child:

“Is there anything you've been worried about or trying to figure out?”

Listen before trying to fix it.

Then pray about it together.

Remind them:

You don't have to know everything.
You don't have to figure everything out today.
You can pray, trust God, and take the next step.

And maybe that's a reminder we adults need, too.

Whatever you're trying to figure out today, remember:

You may not know what's ahead, but you know Who is going with you.

Trust Him with what you don't understand.

Proverbs 3:5–6