Trusting God for Dummies

How hard is it for you to trust God?

I know we would probably answer that question with a quick and defensive, "Of course I trust God!" but in my life, the words of proof come out much easier than the actions that back them up.

We have all had trust betrayed by others in small and large ways. Sometimes it may simply be a friend not showing up when they said they would. We trusted them to arrive in a certain place at a certain time, which is why we showed up then and there, but they didn't. If this happens enough times, we begin to not trust their word to show up when they say they will.

Other times it may be someone disappointing or hurting us with a character flaw. Or maybe it's been an ultimate betrayal of some sort.

If we're honest, sometimes the person that breaks our trust the most is ourselves.

Regardless, we've all had trust broken, and that affects our relationship with God. We know in our head that God is good and loving and completely dependable, but the act of trusting him is difficult.

"Sell all you have and follow me!" Uh, what?
"Pick up your family and move across the continents!" You sure about that?
"Take a day off and do no work!" Easier said than done.
"Trust me with my financial plan for your life!" C'mon now. That's just crazy talk.

Our lack of trust can be very subversive.

In one sense, I would like to say that I have no problem trusting God. If Jesus or an angel of the Lord were to visibly appear before me and say, "Sell everything you have and move to Timbuktu," I like to think I'd follow that command without much hesitation. It would be hard in many ways, but I would know that the Lord had spoken to me and would provide (even miraculously) along the way.

I think most followers of Jesus would say that if they were absolutely, completely, 100% positive God was directing them a certain way or to make a certain decision, they would probably rejoice at knowing God's will and follow with trust.

However, for many of us, myself included, we struggle in trusting ourselves to hear God correctly. "Will I hear him right?" "What if I miss his leading?" and so on.

So let me challenge you with this thought: perhaps the root of not trusting ourselves to hear God is actually another way of not trusting God. If God is God, will he not reveal his will to us in a way we will understand and comprehend?

We may not trust ourselves, but perhaps God is calling us to trust him to lead us in spite of ourselves.

Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.
~ Psalm 9:10

PAUSE and REFLECT: Put aside the "Do I trust God?" question for a minute. Instead, ask "Do I trust myself to hear God?"

If, like most, you have a slight hesitation on that second question, follow it up with, "Is God bigger than my brokenness, bigger than my hard of hearing problems, bigger than my complete fallibility?"

If the answer to that question is yes, then the challenge to us is not to trust ourselves, but to trust God who knows our weaknesses, loves us, and wants to guide us to a beautiful wellness in life. God will still not forsake me. I may the sheep that always wanders or is simply is oblivious to danger around me, but God still will not forsake me.  He's a good and competent shepherd.

God asks us to trust that he is bigger than our weakness and will lead us to green pastures. Can you, today, give him your fallibility and trust that he will guide you and protect you in spite of all that fallibility you possess?

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Photo by Joseph Chan on Unsplash