“Not knowing” can be a Cause of great Anxiety and Stress for All

I was talking to someone recently, who has a great deal of suffering in his life. Like this person a large part of the lives of those suffering is due to the fact that they do not know how things will work out or whether indeed there is a solution to their problem(s).

By Yemti Harry Ndienla

Couple of weeks ago Mr. Fritz Mbome, and Likowo Ndobedi, took centre stage at The Church of The Holy Spirit, Schaumburg, IIIinois, to declare WHAT THEY KNOW (their love for each other) in front of God Almighty.

Their act (the exchange of vow) was a true demonstration, and guarantee of LOVE acknowledged by God including the men and women who cramped the House of God, and reception ground at Palatine there after.

The issue here is not to surround you with the sensation of this wedding, noted to be one of the best in recent times nor to tell you how profound Mr and Mrs Mbome know or love each other but to give you an idea of the “Power of Knowing”

“Not knowing” can be a cause of great anxiety and stress for all. Often married couples or those in relationships do not know if their spouse really loves them. This doubt can be a cause of great anxiety.

Some children, even as adults do not know if one or both parents ever really loved them. So they carry this burden with them every day of their life.

There is part of our human nature that always needs to know things for definite. We have a need to understand and be in full possession of knowledge in order to be at ease with ourselves, others and our surroundings. This can be a healthy trait in our humanity but at times it can also be a curse (translate as disadvantage) especially in terms of prayer and our spiritual life.

Have you ever heard the expression, “Curiosity killed the cat?” Well, if we stress ourselves too much over the things we don’t know or understand, we can become despondent, negative, desperate and even make ourselves ill. Wanting to know too much can be a dangerous exercise.

In terms of prayer and faith, acceptance that our human knowledge is imperfect and that we will never fully know God via the intellect, is an important step if we are to make any progress in our prayer life. God is a Mystery and we are invited to enter the Mystery not through our head but through our heart.

A very good spiritual book from the Middle Ages is called “The Cloud of Unknowing”. It counsels all of us who pray and especially those who are trying to pray through difficult situations, not to trust knowledge, but to trust the things of the heart.

The anonymous author writes “Knowledge is full of labor, but love is full of rest”.

When we are fretting too much over unknown futures or solutions to problems, let us remember that we can do little to improve our situation by “thinking”. On the other hand, by praying with our heart so as to experience the ever loving presence of God we can find rest.