03152025 Trusting God

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of the God in whom we can safely trust. “I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him I will trust” (Psalm 91:2).

I have been pondering trust lately. Trust is when we make ourselves vulnerable by yielding our privacy. Trust is also when we purposefully allow ourselves to be vulnerable – letting someone else make decisions or perform actions that will impact us.

Our first experience with trust comes in our families. Our siblings know us in ways that no one else does. Our family members see us at our best, which isn’t a problem, but they also see us at our worst, and that’s where trust matters. Our parents make decisions for us and impact the direction of our lives. They give us our world view, which is very difficult to change later on. We will allow family members to do things for us that we would not trust to anyone else.

We trust emotionally when we talk to someone about our deepest thoughts, longings, and struggles. Whether that is a family member, a friend, or a counselor, we risk when we share what is most sensitive to us, because we don’t know what the person’s response will be. The listener might minimize, laugh, scold, belittle, remain disinterested, become impatient, or gossip; any of these responses causes pain and betrays trust.

We trust physically when it comes to our doctors. We allow doctors to do awkward examinations and procedures, and this requires trust. The more we trust our doctor, the easier those procedures are. We also trust them to recommend courses of action based on how they interpret our symptoms. The risk could be minimal (diet, exercise, common medications), or the risk could be significant (unusual treatments, new procedures, surgeries). Yet we follow these recommendations based on trust in their knowledge.

Marriage requires trust in every way. There is obviously physical vulnerability and a tremendous amount of emotional vulnerability. There is the whole idea of “for better, for worse.” There is no guarantee that the handsome, healthy, spiritual, intelligent, principled man of 25 will maintain those qualities at 45 or 65. He could turn into a lazy bum, an invalid, a monster, or a rebel – and the commitment is for life. He is trusted for major life decisions, and he might not always make the right ones. There is great risk in marriage, and therefore there is great trust.

In each of these categories and examples, people will at times betray our trust. They will hurt us and will take advantage of our vulnerability. This is where trust in God becomes such an incredible thing. God is always trustworthy.

When it comes to our emotions, “Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us” (Psalm 62:8). “The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart” (Psalm 34:18).

Our relationship with God is spiritual, not physical, but we can trust God with our bodies. “I am fearfully and wonderfully made … My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret” (Psalm 139:14-15). “Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not” (Psalm 71:18).

We can trust God financially. “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). “For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills” (Psalm 50:10).

We can trust God with the direction and decisions of our lives. Sometimes God guides us and allows us to decide if we will follow His leading, and sometimes God orchestrates life events over which we have no control whatsoever. Trust means we will follow where He leads, even when it doesn’t make sense or is not our preference. Trust also means we rest instead of fighting when He orchestrates the direction of our path. In either case, we say, “Okay, God. I accept and follow Your plan because I trust You to do what is right.” It will not always be what we would have chosen. It will not always be easy or comfortable. But it will always be right.

We can trust God with everything that we are, even our greatest weaknesses and struggles. We never have to be embarrassed or frightened to come to God. There is nothing that we can’t talk to Him about. God isn’t waiting to crush us when we tell Him our failures; He wants to help us with them. When we come to Him, vulnerably admitting our struggles, we are actually admitting that we need His help. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1:9). “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him” (James 1:5). “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16).

I have tried to picture in my mind what trust in God would look like. Here are my words. Rest. Relax. Settle. Be embraced. Be comfortable in His arms. Be calm. And my favorite: Serene. Or to use a Bible picture – “Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul is even as a weaned child” (Psalm 131:2). This picture corresponds to the practice in verse 1 – “LORD, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty: neither do I exercise myself in great matters, or in things too high for me.”

Wrestling these thoughts into written words has filled my heart with love and appreciation for God, as I focus on how I can trust Him and be at rest. May God help us to trust Him as we openly come to Him as we are and as we rest in Him for all that will come.

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA