There's a trendy little acronym that's making the rounds in managerial circles—VUCA, which stands for volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. The U.S. Army War College first introduced the concept to describe the new realities after the Cold War ended. VUCA refers to the perfect storm of circumstances of life that sometimes hit individuals, families, and churches. It's what happens when you face a string of complicated and ever-changing "unknown unknowns."

Or as an article in the Harvard Business Review put it, VUCA is a catchall phrase for "Hey, it's crazy out there!"