We've heard the verse SO many times, it has probably become cliché...
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6.
I can hear the sing-songy recitation of it even now inside my head :). I even have this verse in a picture hanging on my wall. We think we trust God, but do we really?
The dictionary defines trust this way:
1. firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something.
2. acceptance of the truth of a statement without evidence or investigation.
When have we ( I ) trusted God according to those definitions? I mean REALLY trusted Him. No questions, no what-ifs, no worry, no rationalizing, no excuses, no evidence. Just firm, confident, TRUST; without hesitation.
Trust is completely summed up in Proverbs 3:5-6. How to trust, when to trust, who to trust. God didn't leave any question about the fact that He wants His children to trust Him. As human beings we long to trust someone or something. God made us that way, and He knows that need. Not only, does He know our need, He knows that often those we choose to trust will let us down. That's why He tells us to trust HIM! We look to our pastors, spouses, parents, teachers, and friends as people we can trust, and so we should. But the sad thing about placing your trusting people is that at some point they are going to fail our trust. Maybe that's never happened to you, but it has happened to me... more than once. It's not that they intended to fail, it just happens. We're all sinners. The only Person Who will never fail us is Jesus Christ! That's not to say that we shouldn't trust our pastor or our spouse. It's simply to say, our ultimate confidence needs to be in Christ. A relationship with Him is more secure than any human relationship because He IS perfect.
Trust, faith, and belief all walk hand in hand.
Habakkuk 2:4: Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Mark 11:22: And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.
Romans 5:1: Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Genesis 15:6: And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.
Isaiah 43:10: Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.
Mark 9:23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
We have such a hard time believing God. Probably because we've experienced broken trust in a human relationship. We worry. We try to figure things out on our own. We forget about God. Hard times come, and we think WHY? Why does God let this happen? Complete and absolute trust is not natural for us. It's something we need to practice. I know this, because it's true in my life. I have a terrible time with trusting. It's really hard to have faith and trust when you don't know what the outcome is going to be. It's hard to let go of the secure. Blind trust is a scary thing! It makes us vulnerable. It forces us to relinquish control to Someone we cannot see, feel, taste, or hear. It's uncomfortable, fearful, and just plain hard to do, but God commands us to do it. All through His Word He speaks to our hearts saying, "Trust me. Trust me. I know what you need. Trust me. Let it go. Trust me." I could list hundreds of verses as examples! God wants us to trust Him, so He sends us the situations in life that force us to do that. Otherwise we would walk around in our own confidence forever. However, if you practice trusting God in the easy times, it's certainly easier to trust Him in the hard times.
We need to look at our lives, and realize how God has proved Himself. He provides for us every day. Food, clothing, shelter, employment, encouragement, needs, wants, desires. The Bible says that everything we have comes from God (James 1:17). When we look at His faithfulness, our lack of trust seems quite pathetic. Has God EVER failed? The problem is that we don't (or refuse to) see God in our lives. We focus on self and our accomplishments, instead of realizing that those good and perfect gifts are indeed from the Lord. We need a change in perspective.
Sometimes at my church we'll sing the hymn "'Tis so Sweet to Trust In Jesus." The chorus goes like this:
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him.
How I've proved Him o'er and o'er.
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus.
O for grace to trust Him more.
Sometimes between the verses our pastor will stop and ask for ways we have proved Him. Ways we have seen Him work in our lives. Proving God means recognizing His faithfulness. When we see the proof that our trust has worked in the past, it's so much easier to trust in the future. God has proved Himself MANY times in my life. It's interesting how the more you trust the faithfulness of God, the more you actually SEE it.
Trust has a great result. Peace.
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Isaiah 26:3.
Jess, it is sweet to trust in Jesus. He has proven Himself to me time and time again.
ReplyDeletegood post. Have good week end.
Thanks Aliene :)
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