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Musings on Faith #42 Trust Then Obey | |
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"Trust and obey, for there’s no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey." Thus goes the chorus of an old familiar hymn. As I was once again struggling with the "thorn in my side" (Yes, like Paul, and like most folks, if not all, I have one.), and praying to the Lord to help me overcome it one recent morning on my way to work, God suddenly spoke to me and said "Trust me." I have noticed that on those infrequent occasions when the Lord speaks to me in such a clear and unmistakable way, He does not waste words. His messages are short, to the point, and packed with meaning. Immediately, I felt a lifting of the burden I was carrying. And as I pondered over this message from God over the next few days it came to me that trust is an absolute prerequisite to obedience. Throughout history there have been episodes of soldiers failing or refusing to follow into battle a leader in whom they had no trust. Their lack of trust in their commanding officer caused them to fail to obey. I am one of those people who naturally try to obey God in my own strength and will. Unfortunately, that approach is always doomed to failure. Only through our trust in God can we achieve the level and consistency of obedience which is necessary to living a victorious life in Jesus Christ. Sometimes we think we are trusting when we really are not. We tell ourselves we are giving ourselves over to Him when in |
reality we are going our own way. This is because we are failing to invest ourselves in God’s love and God’s leadership. In other words, we are failing to trust. The old hymn might better be phrased "Trust then obey". Proverbs 3:5(a) says "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart (KJV)". This theme is reiterated throughout Proverbs, the Psalms, and the Old and New Testaments. Trust fully, always.
Most of us trust that our automobiles will carry us to work, or wherever we must go, every day. In fact, we take it for granted that our vehicle will get us where we’re going. If we have such a level of trust in an imperfect machine, made by man, how much more should we trust in God to lead us in the righteous path He desires for us. Not that we should take God for granted, but that we should take for granted (as a given) the fact that He loves us and will not lead us astray. There is no one and no thing more worthy of our trust than Almighty God. Yours in Christ, |
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