How much do I really trust Him?
As pastors and leaders we often teach our people how important it is for them to place their trust in their Creator and Redeemer. We encourage them to exercise dependence upon the One Who is truly trustworthy.
Indeed, this is an essential aspect of our relationship with our Lord and Savior. However, there are times when I also tend to ignore His desires, and make plans that, though they may be good, are not in line with what He desires.
While I would never say it out loud, my actions can tend to promote the idea that I believe that I know better than He does. After all, I know what I want to accomplish. If I allow God to have His way He might change things and do something that I never expected.
A.W. Tozer does a better job than I ever will communicating this truth as he examines Elijah and God’s provision of his needs when he has run away from Jezebel. Do you remember in 1 Kings 17, how God tells him to wait by a brook, and that the ravens will provide food for him there?
Tozer states, “What humiliation! All his life Elijah had been self-sufficient. Now he waited on scavenger birds to give him his daily bread…” (Tozer on Christian Leadership, Ron Eggert, Ed.)
As I pondered this quote the other day as well as the Scripture that inspired it, I wondered just how much I really trust the Lover of my soul. For many of us, we find it easier to trust Jesus with our eternity than we do with the circumstances in which we find ourselves.
We may join in singing the hymn, “God will take care of you,” but do we really believe it? As Elijah sat by the riverbank waiting for his daily sustenance, one would think that there were a lot of thoughts going through his mind.
When those ravens showed up carrying bread, one would think that he would finally begin to fathom the kind of God whom he served. Of course, we are not much different. The Father consistently shows us mercy and provision and we question His love and concern.
Sometimes in the midst of ministry, it is easy for me to forget just Who it is that called me. He has promised to provide for me and my family, and He has never forsaken His promise. Though you and I may doubt His love for us, He will never cease loving you and me.
Do you remember why Elijah was at the brook at Cherith? God told him to go there following the prophet’s first confrontation with Ahab. Later in his ministry, he will again find himself on the run from Ahab and Jezebel. However, that will be his choice rather than God’s.
Perhaps, like many of us, he had forgotten what the Father had done for him. Are you and I guilty of having rather short memories when it comes to God’s acts of mercy and provision in our lives?
Like Elijah, we try to hide from those whom we believe have some kind of power over us. It is as if we have ceased trusting God’s provision and watch care over our lives.
Of course, if the Father is able to deliver me from the enemies of sin and death, why shouldn’t I trust Him to do what is best? Cannot the One Who can be trusted with my soul be trusted with the mundane details of this life?
When the enemy seeks to plant doubts about our Savior’s love for us in our hearts and minds, we must rebuke him by reminding him of the faithfulness of the One to Whom we belong.
As I look back on my life, I can remember countless times where the Lord has demonstrated His love for me. There are far too many situations and circumstances where His hand has been so clearly evident. He has walked with my family through some challenging circumstances and always proven Himself to be faithful.
I am sure that if you took a few moments to look back upon your life, you too would be able to remember numerous times where the Father has shown Himself to be more than faithful. Whether it was through the provision of your daily needs, the miraculous healing of a loved one, or deliverance from an unseen danger, you know Who it was that delivered you.
It is my prayer for each of us that we will choose to trust the One Who is faithful no matter what circumstances or others might seem to say. Seek Him as He makes His love known to you today. (Mike Cooper is Missouri Baptist Convention’s director of Sunday School Discipleship.)