Total Trust

"Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths."
                                                               Proverbs 3:5-6




The quickest way to truly evaluate your level of trust for God is to suddenly be thrust into a scary predicament for which there seems no humanly possible way out. When we feel safe and comfortable it is easy to over-estimate our genuine level of trust in God. All of us want to believe that we trust God completely but it is only He that knows the real truth. Often, we deceive ourselves into believing we trust God more than we really do.

A scary predicament is exactly where Daniel found himself hundreds of years ago when he was cast into the lion's den for the crime of  praying and practicing his faith. Even though King Darius knew that Daniel was honest and had an "excellent spirit" (Daniel 6:3), the other administrators were jealous and schemed to set Daniel up for a fall. It seemed that Daniel's honesty would pose as a hindrance for their financial gain and unscrupulous activities and he needed to be removed so that they could advance in their agenda. What these administrators did not understand, however, is that when they came against Daniel they invited God's judgment into their own lives.

Nevertheless, in the short term it was Daniel that suffered the consequences of their aberrant choices. While they knew they could never tempt Daniel to do anything immoral or illegal, they chose to make an example of his faith and make sure that he was punished for practicing it. Cleverly, they deceived King Darius into  signing a law that made it illegal to pray or worship anyone other than the king. They appealed to the kings' ego and they succeeded. Unknowingly, King Darius put his friend, Daniel, in jeopardy and expedited his entrance before a group of hungry lions.

Interestingly, Daniel was praying for God to deliver His people (Daniel 9:1) when he, himself, was captured for breaking the law. He was leaning on God's promises in faith and believing that He would turn things around for His people when his own world seemingly came to an abrupt halt. Despite his circumstances worsening, Daniel pressed into God all the more expecting that His God was able and would show up on his behalf. It wasn't that Daniel was exceedingly strong; rather it was that he had learned how to truly depend on His God.

D.L. Moody says, "Real true faith is man's weakness leaning on God's strength." The author of the book of Hebrews describes it as "man's weakness transformed into God's strength" (Hebrews 11:34).
Our outlook will determine the outcome, and when we choose to lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord we realize that no matter what happens the outcome is in His hands and we have nothing to fear.

King Darius was distressed when his administrators informed him that Daniel had broken the law. He did not want to sign Daniel's death warrant but his own pride had put him in this untenable position. He spent a day trying to find a way of escape but there was none to be found. Before Daniel was lowered into the lion's den, the king offered a prayer for Daniel that God would deliver him and then covered the pit and sealed the rock so that he complied with the law.

The next morning the king went to the pit and cried out to Daniel before it even could be opened. He confessed that Daniel's God was the Living God and not an idol and that God had the power to deliver Daniel. When Darius heard Daniel's voice respond back to him it must have been a huge relief and he then knew that God had delivered him. We are told that "Then the king was exceedingly glad and commanded that Daniel should be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no hurt of any kind was found on him because he believed in (relied on, adhered to, and trusted in) his God" (Daniel 6:23).

The more we know God the easier it is to trust Him. Really trust Him.  The definition of trust is, "belief that someone or something is reliable and good. It is the assure reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone." In other words, when we trust someone we depend on them. In our relationship with God, it means that we have learned how to completely depend on Him and not on ourselves.

Child-like faith is required. It is so easy for children to trust because they have no grown-up barriers that prevent them from doing so. We have to learn how to let go of our grown-up barriers and false perceptions of who God is. If we see Him as anyone other than a loving heavenly Father we need to let go of our misperceptions or unforgiveness in order to completely trust in Him.

A fulfilled life is one that receives the love of God. Because God is love, the more we know Him and have let Him into our lives, the more we will realize just how much He loves us. Individually and personally. He is passionate for each one of us because He uniquely and lovingly created us. He can do no less than to love us like crazy!

Receiving His love will also help us to love Him passionately with our whole heart. As we grow in the Word and spend time in praise and worship everyday, we begin to put Him first. Our desire becomes to spend time with Him and to obey Him. Love must be the catalyst for our obedience in order to yield a peaceable harvest.

Trusting Him means we understand that His faithfulness outweighs our circumstances. When we build our faith on God's character, we learn to trust Him through the difficult times.  Ernest Wadsworth said, "Pray for a faith that will not shrink  when washed in the waters of affliction." This means we learn how to be content in all circumstances (Philippians 4:12). As we learn contentment through adversity, the fruit of the Spirit (Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) grows within us. Adversity can render a soil in our hearts that is fertile for growth if we allow it to.

Having a renewed mind is required to trust God. We can only trust to the degree that our thoughts are godly. Since faith is built only on truth, we have to filter out anything that is contrary to it. We cannot rely on our own insight or understanding. We must allow the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth so that we can consistently rely on God and not vacillate because of emotions or circumstances.

There are hindrances to trusting God. They are as follows:
1. Independence and self-reliance
2. Self-pity (Form of idolatry because it focuses on self and makes excuses)
3.Circumstances (when we allow them to become bigger than God is)
4. Unbelief (brings fear, pulls us down, and separates us from God)
5. Guilt and Condemnation (causes depression, despair, and a lack of fruit)
6. Fear and anxiety (robs us of rest and keeps us focused on wrong things)

Our goal is to remove the hindrances and to live a life of radical trust. This is the kind of trust that knows God intimately, believes His promises, and trusts Him with the outcome of all things. It focuses on His past faithfulness and meditates on His goodness. It doesn't worry about tomorrow because it understands that God has that covered too. Trusting God radically changes everything and also inspires others to live a life of total trust!


        "For He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul He fills with good things."
                                                           Psalm 107:9