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When “What If” Keeps You Up at Night

June 3, 2026
00:00

Fear and faith ask the same question about the future but only one of them leads to the God who can be trusted with what we cannot see.

Bonnie Sala: The night before something uncertain, many of us lie awake and imagine tomorrow. I'm Bonnie Sala, with Reset. A medical test, a conversation you don't want to have, a future that no longer looks like you thought it would. Your mind fills in the gaps. What if this goes wrong?

As a boy, David lay awake wondering, what if I don't make the team? What if I fail the test? As a teenager, what if she says no to a date? As a young man, he wondered, what if I'm not good enough for this? The questions changed with every season, but the voice asking "what if" never did.

Someone once observed that faith and fear both ask us to believe in something we can't see, but they listen to very different voices. Fear rehearses what might go wrong. Faith looks at the same unknown future and chooses a different anchor.

The Bible doesn't describe faith as certainty about outcomes. It describes faith as trust in God, something solid to stand on while we hope, not because the future is clear, but because God is trustworthy. The Bible book of Hebrews says, faith shows the reality of what we hope for. It is the evidence of things we cannot see.

The Bible tells of ordinary people moving forward without knowing how things will turn out, leaving what's familiar, stepping into danger, and trusting promises they couldn't yet see. Faith is often practiced by people who are afraid but still choose to place their trust in God.

Today, you may be tempted to ask, "what if?" The question isn't whether you will believe; it's what you'll believe. Will fear write the story, or will you trust the character of the God who meets His people in uncertainty? I'm Bonnie Sala. Ready to grow your faith? Discover practical tools and more at guidelines.org.

This transcript is provided as a written companion to the original message and may contain inaccuracies or transcription errors. For complete context and clarity, please refer to the original audio recording. Time-sensitive references or promotional details may be outdated. This material is intended for personal use and informational purposes only.

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About Reset

We all need a daily reset!  Bonnie Sala shares 2 minutes of daily encouragement that will help you connect the way you live with what you believe.  Learn how the truth and grace of God’s Word can reset your thinking, relationships, attitudes, habits and more!

About Bonnie Sala

Bonnie is the president of Guidelines International Ministries, which exists to shine the light of the Gospel in places of spiritual darkness through audio messages that encourage, equip and bring hope to new believers, the unreached, and those living under persecution.

Contact Reset with Bonnie Sala

Mailing Address:

Guidelines International

PO Box 2035

Mission Viejo, CA 92690

Telephone:

949.582.5001