The Next Right Thing
Finding your way forward when you can’t see the future
There are moments in life when everything feels dark at once. Moments when the future feels uncertain, hope feels distant, and the path ahead seems impossible to see. In those moments, it’s not uncommon to feel frozen—unsure what to do, unsure how to move forward, unsure whether things will ever feel right again.
Many great stories include a moment like this, where the hero is stripped of support and left alone to face the darkness. And in a very real way, each of us will face moments like that in our own lives. Times when the old life is gone, the future is unclear, and all we have left is the present moment.
In those moments, the answer is rarely found in solving everything at once. Healing, clarity, and peace don’t usually arrive in a single breakthrough. Instead, they begin with something much smaller—the next right thing.
Sometimes the next right thing is as simple as taking your next breath. Sometimes it’s getting out of bed. Sometimes it’s showing up to work, asking for help, forgiving someone, or choosing to pray again after a long silence. The next right thing will look different for everyone, but it will always be small enough to take—even when everything else feels overwhelming.
There is deep wisdom in learning not to look too far ahead. When we try to see the entire road at once, fear often rushes in and tells us we can’t do it, that the pain will never end, that there is no happy ending waiting for us. But when we stay focused on just the next step, we give ourselves permission to keep going.
Healing the heart and mind often looks like rehabilitation. Progress can feel slow. Each step can be painful. But every step strengthens us just enough to take the next one. We move forward not because we know how everything will turn out—but because choosing what is right matters, even when the outcome is unclear.
Even Christ experienced moments of deep loneliness and suffering. He continued forward, trusting that there was purpose beyond the pain—purpose He could not yet see. And because He walked that road, He understands yours. When you include God in the next right thing, you are never walking alone.
Scripture reminds us that there are days when life feels shattered—when it seems impossible to imagine things being whole again. But it also promises that Sunday will come. Light will return. Healing will follow. Whether in this life or the next, God does not abandon those who keep moving forward, one faithful step at a time.
“I won’t look too far ahead—it’s too much for me to take. But break it down to this next breath, this next step, this next choice I can make.”
Today’s Daily Challenge
Pause for a moment and listen. What is the quiet voice inside you inviting you to do next? Don’t worry about the whole journey—just take the next right step. Then, when you’re ready, take the one after that.
Thank you for choosing to keep moving forward today, even if the step feels small. Light is closer than you think.
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