I went out for coffee with a friend of mine the other day. Over warm cup of mochas, we both discussed our current life situations. I talked about how I was struggling with finding a new job / niche in life that would allow me to support my family. She talked about her husband’s search for a new job after losing his.
I said that I felt like everything as of late in my life is part of one big trust exercise.
She confessed to me that she believed that God was taking them on a journey of trust. They have not been relying on God as much as they should be because they still have a healthy savings account. She told me that she thinks that before all of this ends, the account will be emptied and they will face a new reality where they have nothing but God to fall back on.
I told her that’s exactly where I am in my life. I said that I felt like everything as of late in my life, including this blog and my job search, is part of one big trust exercise. God is demanding that I trust Him at a level that I have never trusted Him before.
1 For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
Over the recent years, one of my steadfast prayers was that God would draw me closer to Him, that He would reveal more and more of Himself to me, and that I would learn to trust the One who created me.
3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his high position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse.
There is a famous short story written by W.W. Jacobs called “The Monkey’s Paw.” The story is about a man who acquires a magical monkey’s paw that can grant three wishes. The paw is indeed magical and does grant wishes, but the wishes come at a serious cost. For instance, the man’s first wish is for £200 to finish the mortgage. The next day his son leaves for work and is killed in a machinery accident at the factory where he works. The compensation for his death is…£200.
Harsh, ironic wish-fulfillment twists like this are what gave rise to the phrase “be careful what you wish for.” It’s true, because you just might get what you wished for but not in the way you expected it nor in the way you wanted it to.
This is how I’m feeling right now about my prayer to God for increased trust and a deeper relationship. I prayed from a sincere place and did not expect to be run through the emotional ringer like this.
5 For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
8 Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us.
I prayed from a sincere place and did not expect to be run through the emotional ringer like this.
What does trust in God look like, I mean, REALLY look like? The psalmists wrote extensively about it. They wrote about trusting God in times of prosperity and in times of leanness. The Bible is chock full of stories of men and women who struggled with trusting God, even when presented with crazy supernatural things in front of their eyes like burning bushes and parting seas and people rising from the dead. Why is it so hard for us to trust the One who created us and promises that we will be taken care of (Matthew 6:28-34)?
9 Those of low estate are but a breath;
those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
they are together lighter than a breath.
10 Put no trust in extortion;
set no vain hopes on robbery;
if riches increase, set not your heart on them.
Like verse ten of Psalm 62 says, if we have a savings account that is padded, how can we trust God on a level where we genuinely take Him at His word and follow him wholeheartedly? Like my friend, it is so easy to trust our own devices because we know ourselves and our plans. We also believe in ourselves. And, I think that’s the root of it all. Do we believe in ourselves more than we believe in God?
11 Once God has spoken;
twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God,
12 and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love.
For you will render to a man
according to his work.
I don’t have a full answer on what fully trusting and relying on God looks like, but I’m still working it out myself and I desperately want to believe in God and His perfect plan (Psalm 18:30) more than myself.
What do you think? What kind of struggles have you had in trusting God? How has God rewarded your faith in Him? Leave your comments below.
GodPsalmtrust
What Does It Mean to Trust in God?
February 13, 2015
Devotionals
Comments Off on What Does It Mean to Trust in God?
Matt
I went out for coffee with a friend of mine the other day. Over warm cup of mochas, we both discussed our current life situations. I talked about how I was struggling with finding a new job / niche in life that would allow me to support my family. She talked about her husband’s search for a new job after losing his.
She confessed to me that she believed that God was taking them on a journey of trust. They have not been relying on God as much as they should be because they still have a healthy savings account. She told me that she thinks that before all of this ends, the account will be emptied and they will face a new reality where they have nothing but God to fall back on.
I told her that’s exactly where I am in my life. I said that I felt like everything as of late in my life, including this blog and my job search, is part of one big trust exercise. God is demanding that I trust Him at a level that I have never trusted Him before.
1 For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
Over the recent years, one of my steadfast prayers was that God would draw me closer to Him, that He would reveal more and more of Himself to me, and that I would learn to trust the One who created me.
3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his high position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse.
There is a famous short story written by W.W. Jacobs called “The Monkey’s Paw.” The story is about a man who acquires a magical monkey’s paw that can grant three wishes. The paw is indeed magical and does grant wishes, but the wishes come at a serious cost. For instance, the man’s first wish is for £200 to finish the mortgage. The next day his son leaves for work and is killed in a machinery accident at the factory where he works. The compensation for his death is…£200.
Harsh, ironic wish-fulfillment twists like this are what gave rise to the phrase “be careful what you wish for.” It’s true, because you just might get what you wished for but not in the way you expected it nor in the way you wanted it to.
This is how I’m feeling right now about my prayer to God for increased trust and a deeper relationship. I prayed from a sincere place and did not expect to be run through the emotional ringer like this.
5 For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
8 Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us.
What does trust in God look like, I mean, REALLY look like? The psalmists wrote extensively about it. They wrote about trusting God in times of prosperity and in times of leanness. The Bible is chock full of stories of men and women who struggled with trusting God, even when presented with crazy supernatural things in front of their eyes like burning bushes and parting seas and people rising from the dead. Why is it so hard for us to trust the One who created us and promises that we will be taken care of (Matthew 6:28-34)?
9 Those of low estate are but a breath;
those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
they are together lighter than a breath.
10 Put no trust in extortion;
set no vain hopes on robbery;
if riches increase, set not your heart on them.
Like verse ten of Psalm 62 says, if we have a savings account that is padded, how can we trust God on a level where we genuinely take Him at His word and follow him wholeheartedly? Like my friend, it is so easy to trust our own devices because we know ourselves and our plans. We also believe in ourselves. And, I think that’s the root of it all. Do we believe in ourselves more than we believe in God?
11 Once God has spoken;
twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God,
12 and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love.
For you will render to a man
according to his work.
I don’t have a full answer on what fully trusting and relying on God looks like, but I’m still working it out myself and I desperately want to believe in God and His perfect plan (Psalm 18:30) more than myself.
What do you think? What kind of struggles have you had in trusting God? How has God rewarded your faith in Him? Leave your comments below.
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