Jack and Brandis sat behind us at the football at Norwich last Saturday… On the pitch at half time Jack asks Brandis to marry him… He’s been planning it for months, she has no idea… She says, ‘Yes.’
The West Brom supporters chant, ‘You don’t know what you’re doing!’ Everyone laughs. It’s a familiar football song – usually made by fans who disagree with a referee’s decision…
I’ve subsequently imagined West Brom supporters gate-crashing our wedding. We say, ‘I do.’ They chant, ‘You don’t know what you’re doing.’ There would have been some truth in their allegation. Nearly fifty-three years ago we didn’t know what we were letting ourselves in for. Not that we regret it…
We’ve been watching the TV mini-series ‘Adolescence’. Jamie, an apparently ordinary 13-year-old boy, is arrested on suspicion of murdering his classmate, Katie. There’s questioning, investigations and interviews; detectives, teachers and psychologists are involved…
Jamie’s family have to deal with the community’s backlash against them following Jamie’s arrest. His parents, Eddie and Manda, are ordinary parents doing the best they can. Understandably they question the way they’ve parented Jamie. Were they in any way to blame for the murder?
I reflected on our parenting. When our children were born… ‘You don’t know what you’re doing’? Probably. We’d no previous experience, no practice parenting. Like Eddie and Manda we did our best…
Yesterday I read about King Jehoshaphat. An enemy army is attacking Israel. Jehoshaphat prays publicly for God’s help. His prayer ends: ‘We have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.’
‘We don’t know what we’re doing. We look to You,’ is a good personal prayer
It’s Lent. We’re looking forward to Easter. Two weeks today will be Good Friday. We shall remember Jesus’ trial and the beating, the mocking and undeserved suffering. We shall recall the crucifixion and Jesus’ words:
‘They don’t know what they’re doing. Father, forgive them.’ Another good personal prayer.
malcolmsmusings.org 
Trusting, walking and placing our faith in Jesus. He knows best.
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He certainly does, Allan. Sometimes, if I’m honest, it’s easier to talk about trust than to actually do it!
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I agree. It is always easier to talk than do it…
There are times in our lives, though, that we do not have any other option than trust Him. That’s when trusting leaves the realms of talking to the doing it.
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Love the post, Malcolm. We wouldn’t need faith at all if every step we took we knew what we doing. That would erase the joy of discovery, growth, the richness of experience-painful or not, etc. Humanity will not have all the answers upfront.
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You’re right, Sandra. I find that the first step – admitting that I don’t know what I’m doing – isn’t always easy, because too often I like to think I’m strong enough and wise enough manage on my own.
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Malcolm, I frequently don’t know what I’m doing and relate to Psalms 40:1, “I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry!”
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That’s helpful, Dana… Patience with God’s help when we don’t know know what to do is a good intention.
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