Biblical Strategy #2: Trust

Trusting God. Something that is so easy to say, but something that is so difficult to do in practice.

Proverbs 3:5 has always been my life verse:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart

and lean not on your own understanding;

~ Proverbs 3:5

Recently a friend of mine texted that this has probably been the hardest part on her walk with God. I appreciated her honest words.

For many of us, this is probably very real to us if we are honest. Trusting God – so hard to do.

Why is it so hard to trust God?

Well, for many of us, there have probably been a lot of disappoint from people and circumstances in our lives. It is so easy to carry this to our relationship with God. For many of us, we have had the rug pulled out from under us so many times that it’s hard to trust; it’s hard to wait on God’s timing.

We often have a time frame in mind, so it is hard to just let go. We want things done in our time, in our way. We live in a society where we are not inconvenienced. If we want food, we go to the store; we go get fast food. We are used to fast, fast, fast. We don’t take things slow. We don’t do slow in our society.

Because of this, it is not surprising that we expect the same results from God. We want Him to provide our needs now. The painful growing process is too inconvenient. We groan and get frustrated because we have to wait.

It’s hard to even write this blog because it is a difficult truth to swallow.

If you’ll trust me with your time (pardon the pun), I’d like to share a poem with you that I think pretty much encompasses the struggle you and I go through:

I think, as captured in this poem, the big dilemma with trust is time. While we are in the waiting season, we may feel stuck. There may be times we feel hopeless or feel the pang of time passing us by.

Interestingly, four powerful books of the Bible were written when Paul, known as being a servant to our Lord Jesus, was in prison. If God could use Paul in prison, He can definitely use us no matter where we are in life.

Anxiety. I think a lot of anxiety can build up when our life doesn’t turn out like we have planned. We try so hard only to see things slip through our fingers. I want to share with you a powerful parable John Piper gave in a video I watched. If you don’t want to watch the video, let me try to summarize it for you…

In the video, Piper talks about going on vacation, and he ends up losing his Master Card. On this vacation, he is able to enjoy his family and not get frustrated at all. He talks about how normally he would be flustered. As he tells this, you may be thinking to yourself, why isn’t he concerned in this particular instance? A friend returns it by mail when it is found. The ending of the story is that…Piper never knew it was missing! Yet, there it was, in the mail.

In the same way, we get so stressed out, we often lack trust in God. We let the setbacks get to us. We mourn our current condition. All along though, God has the answer in the mail. Same result – we have a choice whether we are going to respond in frustration or live the life God has given us and trust Him. He is working on our behalf. He is making all things work together for our good. Just read Jeremiah 29:11 and see that His plans for you are good!

The problem comes when we don’t believe these truths. We have a bountiful array of verses to get us through even the most difficult of situations. May you and I hold on to these promises. God means what He says in His Word. May we trust Him.

Join me in this prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

It is so hard to trust You now. I have pain from within just thinking about how long I might have to wait. Sometimes, doubt creeps in and, to be honest, I don’t trust You. I want to. I have my fears from within. I thank You for all that You’ve delivered me from. I ask that you give me a steadfast spirit. Help me to trust You. When I feel lonely, insecure, and my life feels stagnant please fill me with Your love. Give me purpose in this waiting season. I love you.

In Jesus name,

Amen

*Additional Resource: John Piper video [The Secret to Fighting Anxiety // Ask Pastor John]… https://youtu.be/ubSnOIjhSzc