Today I was thinking about Breanne and a conversation we once had. During the conversation, she made a comment that jumped in my spirit.
We were talking about her horse, Snowbell. We were discussing her training. I said to Breanne, “Snowbell trusts you now, doesn’t she?” Breanne replied, “she trusts me not to hurt her, but she doesn’t yet trust me to go where I go.”
That statement hit my spirit. I meditated on it for days. I see this same thing in many of God’s people. I have even seen it in myself at times. We trust that God will not hurt us. That He means us no harm. But do we always trust Him to go where He says go? Or do what He says do. Especially when it makes no sense or when we can’t see the next step.
Trust is a funny thing. I believe there are different levels of trust. I have friends that I trust with general knowledge of my life, but I don’t trust them with the deep parts of my heart. There are only a handful of people that I trust with the deepest areas of my heart.
I trust God with my eternal salvation. However, I have had to ask myself if there are some areas I don’t trust Him with. I believe it is that way for most people. We trust God in one area but perhaps not in every area.
Proverbs 3:5 says, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding.
The word trust in this scripture means to have trust and confidence in, to be bold and secure in the Lord. However, as I did a deeper search, I found it also means to lie helpless, face down. This is a picture of someone, totally submitted to God, waiting for His instruction or command. The depth of trust is literally submission. To completely trust God, we must have a heart of full obedience to God, one that is fully submitted to God.
The phrase, lean not to your own understanding, is interesting as well. To lean is to prop yourself up against something. Usually, we are trying to prop ourselves up on our own understanding. That is not what we are supposed to do. Man’s wisdom, man’s understanding cannot support the weight of our lives. However, God’s wisdom is more than able to support the weight of our lives. When we choose to trust in God, the full weight of our lives, settles on Him. That is good news!
I don’t know how many times I have tried leaning on my own understanding. Fully thinking I was going the right way, only to have God stop me and get me back on His path. My way, even if seems good, is not always God’s way. The only way I can continually go God’s way is to lean entirely on Him. To refuse to lean on my own understanding, my own insights, or my own wisdom. That begins with seeking His face in every step, every decision, and every challenge that comes my way. That begins with getting His point of view and acting on that alone.
Proverbs 3:6 says, in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths.
Trust begins by acknowledging God and His wisdom and then acting on that alone. The bible tells us repeatedly to trust in God alone. Not to trust in flesh. That means our own flesh as well. Today I challenge you to seek Gods way – in the big things but also in the day-to-day small decisions. Trust Him. He is worthy of your trust. He has a good plan for you. He has a good outcome for you.
One day Snowbell will learn to not only trust that Breanne will not hurt her, but she will also learn it is safe to go where she is led. So should we. It is my prayer for us today that we know and trust that God has a good plan for us. That we can trust Him enough to go wherever He leads us. Trust that empowers us to do whatever He asks of us. A trust that solely relies on God and His way of doing things. Total surrender – total submission. Lord, help us develop a trust in You that is without limits. That is our prayer, in Jesus’ name.
