Seems to be a word that we throw around quite a bit. Trust your doctor. Trust your government. Don’t trust anyone. What does it mean? This verse says that trust and confidence are similar ideas. The one who trusts in the Lord has his confidence in the Lord. Hmmm.
First, are you totally dependent on the Lord? Maybe the Lord doesn’t fix you breakfast in the morning, or brush your teeth, but I have met people recently for whom even these simple tasks were impossible. They needed caregivers to do these things for them. Trust can involve total dependence.
Second, realizing that you can’t do it on your own. We think we can do many things without help, and the Lord made us to be able to. But there are some things, big and important things like paying for grace that we cannot do. Only the blood of Christ can do that. Trust includes this kind of understanding.
Third, understanding that you are not God. I know. While we want to be God’s counselors sometimes, giving Him our opinion about certain things, in the end we have to acknowledge that we don’t know everything. We don’t know why bad things happen. But they do, and whether God permits them or uses them to chasten is we may not know, but trust is letting God be God, and us keeping our place as limited human beings.
Fourth, submission. Like the serenity prayer, we accept the things we cannot change, and let God have the final say. Even when something looks really inviting, even tempting and God says NO, we must be willing to submit to His wisdom and trust His word. We acknowledge that God does know whats’s best for us, even when we are sure we know better. We trust His commands for our lives.
Lastly, trace through your life in all the lessons He has taught you, all the times you’ve trusted Him. Has God been faithful? Has He kept His promises to you? Have you been blessed and been better off obeying than ignoring? Remember His kindnesses to you, and His record of faithfulness. This will help you trust him for your future.
Trust is being totally dependent, realizing helplessness, understanding your limitations, submitting to His will, and tracing His track record in your life. Trust is all of these things, and probably more. But that’s enough for this morning. We’ve got a day to work out our salvation.
God bless you today.
Meritt Musings 