TRUST! My Study For January

[bvwsmaker]

I've decided to narrow my personal biblical studies a little by focusing on only one thing a month (rather than the whole she-bang). For January, I'll be studying about trust. I'll be looking at passages with the word trust to get a better sense of what the bible has to say about it. Note: Since trust is such a big subject, I'll probably be revisiting the word again later this year.

Why did I pick trust to start? Because I still greatly struggle with it, whether it's trusting God or trusting others. I need to gain practical experience at trusting God and others (and not do so much self-protection routine). I also need to recognize opportunities to trust God and give Him a chance to really surprise me with His goodness and blessings. Which could lead to greater trust! I hope to turn this experiential aspect into practical encouragement to others that I encourage.

I'd like to invite others here in the Fab 40 forum to join me on this journey. I'm hoping we'll share ideas, make discoveries and gain experience at trusting God and others! Let's get started with a simple question:

What comes to mind when you hear the word trust?

 

[tryme]

Great topic: TRUST

I think trusting God goes along with our level of faith and desire to worship Him.
My devotional this morning was about worship but in a way I see it as trusting God to provide for us.

Worship is giving God the best that He has given you. Be careful what you do with the best you have. Whenever you get a blessing from God, give it back to Him as a love gift. Take time to meditate before God and offer the blessing back to Him in a deliberate act of worship. If you hoard a thing for yourself, it will turn into spiritual dry rot, as the manna did when it was hoarded. God will never let you hold a spiritual thing for yourself, it has to be given back to Him that He may make it a blessing to others.

When God gives to us we are in turn to give to others therefore fulfilling our obligation to give back to God.
It is so important to get to the point that we trust that God will always provide for us.

We should NOT be hoarding the blessings God does provide for us.
Whether it be time, education/skills, finances, material items or anything else.

 

[strawberrygate]

What comes to mind for me when I hear the word 'trust' is having faith in what I can't see and knowing that God is always in control even when what I do see is a mess.

 

[MMXII]

Trust to me is blind faith. Do you automatically trust someone you don't know? I sure don't, they "earn" that trust. Can you trust someone that has hurt you or let you down? It's hard for me to do, once again they have to "earn" that trust back. When you first heard about God, did you trust Him? I grew up in church so that's all I've heard all my life. But once I knew Him, believed in Him I trusted what I had learned. Then when I turned my life over to Him I trusted His word, trusted His goodness, trusted His love. He has never let me down.

 

[Tricia4Jesus]

I would love to join in this study.

One word that comes to mind for me is BELIEF. And how our UNBELIEF affects what can happen in our lives because of it. I have that picture in my head who reached out and touched Jesus' garment, and was healed instantly of her problems.

I don't know what was going on in her head as he moved through that crowd of people. But it was of the utmost importance to her to reach out to Him.

I think, for myself as well as others that we have a hard time with believing that the Father can and will do for our lives. I think it really revolves around how we were raised. Whether we came from and abusive background or not. In my case, the belief that my heavenly Father can supply all my needs is sometimes a little overbearing, and then when he actually does it, I am blown away. He is the only one I can cling to.

There are big changes in my life coming up. And I don't know what is going to happen. So, I really need the Lord to help me with my unbelief. And I know again He is going to show me how faithful He is, even when I am not.

 

[tryme]

One of my most favorite hymns is Trust and Obey:

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt or a fear, not a sigh or a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Refrain[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share,
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross,
But is blessed if we trust and obey.[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Refrain[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]But we never can prove the delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favor He shows, for the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Refrain[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at His feet.
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way.
What He says we will do, where He sends we will go;
Never fear, only trust and obey.[/font]

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Refrain[/font]

 

[bvwsmaker]

My friend asked me tonight - "Do you trust me?"

I think I said "I'm trying, but it's hard."

He is starting to earn my trust and I can't think of any reasons so far where he hasn't been trustworthy. He wasn't judgmental when I confessed many of my worst sins to him. He's been pretty transparent about his own sins and what he's been through. And yet I'm still struggling with trusting him. I'm fairly sure that I fear that he'll try to play God in my life and ask (demand?) that I do things that perhaps I think that God wouldn't have me try yet. I actually stated that fear to him and he felt I put him on the defensive. But he tried to reassure me anyway that he wouldn't do that. So now I'm starting to wonder if my fear of trusting in him is irrational or if I'm possibly transferring something in the past onto him.

I'm going to keep giving him chances to earn my trust. He has earned that so far!

 

[MMXII]

I have that problem where I irrationally transfer something from the past to someone else. It's not fair to them but it's hard for me not to.

 

[bvwsmaker]

I have that problem where I irrationally transfer something from the past to someone else. It's not fair to them but it's hard for me not to.

I think I do it with most men (especially the manly (macho-type) men). Women can gain my trust far easier than men (and women are easier to encourage than men).

Though I am thinking that eventually I'll have to change my line of thinking from "Men suck!" to "Not all men suck".) I'm thinking that having horrible father figures can't be good!

 

[MMXII]

I trust women more than men. So I guess we have the same trust issue, you and I both don't trust men. When you're hearts been stamped on, it's hard not to think the next guy isn't going to do the same thing. God's still working on me with this.

 

[tryme]

I think at some point trust has to be an active thing.
You have to decide you ARE going to trust someone.

I had a boyfriend I dated for many years.
We had known each other since our early 20s.

It seemed at times he was holding back.
He had told me some really bad things he had done.
And things that had happened to him - physical, sexual and mental abuse.
I had never flickered in my love for him when he told me things.

I would get frustrated when I realized there was more.
But when He finally told me it was nothing.
But somehow in his mind it was far worse than it was in reality.
He felt whatever it was was going to shine a negative light, I think.

He had to take the active stance of trusting me.
I certainly had proved myself and he admitted to that.

I guess as the person on the outside...
We have to learn to let the person take the time they need.

 

[MMXII]

That's true Maggie. There are things I'd never tell anyone. Would my special someone still love me, probably but I just can't bring myself to tell it.

 

[bvwsmaker]

If they're patient with me, I'm pretty open. If I sense impatience, I'll clam up. (Unless I'm momentarily bold then I'll say I feel they're impatient and see what they do with that.)

I know it's simply a decision Maggie but it's a tough decision. Though I suspect it would be a lot easier if I prayed beforehand for help in trusting "Mike". (Duh! Sounds like a good idea to try for next time and then see what happens!)

Initiating is tough for me. (Though I do sometimes get momentary boldness!!!) One of the things that God's shown me is that I tend to passively expect rather than actively seek.

 

[tryme]

I've been thinking about trust of others and trust of God.

TRUST = opening up = FEAR of rejection

When we open up to others we are at least at some level afraid of being rejected.
And sometimes we are. That should not stop us from trusting others.
We would never find out how great our true friends are without trusting them.

Trusting God should be easier.
However I have heard some say they think they have sinned too much.
So they too FEAR rejection from God.
But the fact is God forgives and all we have to do is go to him for comfort and peace.

 

[bvwsmaker]

I agree Maggie that opening up does open the possibility of being rejected. That could be one of the reasons I'm very cautious about how I choose my friends. (Which is starting to sound conditional and that's probably not God's way at all.)

And your statement "We would never find out how great our true friends are without trusting them." is true wisdom! I do want to give Mike that chance.

And I could write a book about my discoveries in trying to trust God. (Or actually a song I've been working on for about 15 years.) It has a progressive chorus. The first verse is about the time of salvation and the chorus goes "It was then You became my Father, then You became my Father, It was then You became my Father finally". The second verse is about walking some time, then the second chorus goes "I know now You're my Father, I know now You're my Father, Yes I know now You're my Father finally. The third verse is about more walking, more discoveries and then the chorus goes "You're my wonderful Heavenly Father, my wonderful Heavenly Father, You're my wonderful Heavenly Father finally". I always liked that progression of recognition of who God the Father really is!

 

[Tattered]

I don't think I have trouble trusting. My hubby does though. I think trust is so very liberating especially where God is concerned. I have to remind myself that people can be dangerous. Even when I've had my share of hurts in the hands of other people I still open up far too soon. It frightens people, I think. It's a miracle that I didn't scare my poor hubby off the way I've trusted him. He'd say, you shouldn't trust me so much ... I'd say ... why not? ... and then trust him anyway.

... Trusting God is different, I think. He's not tactile ... but He knows just what you need to learn to trust him. He gave me a scary illness so that I had to cling to Him, and I learned what it really is like to TRUST. It's blissful!

 

[tryme]

And I could write a book about my discoveries in trying to trust God. (Or actually a song I've been working on for about 15 years.) It has a progressive chorus. The first verse is about the time of salvation and the chorus goes "It was then You became my Father, then You became my Father, It was then You became my Father finally". The second verse is about walking some time, then the second chorus goes "I know now You're my Father, I know now You're my Father, Yes I know now You're my Father finally. The third verse is about more walking, more discoveries and then the chorus goes "You're my wonderful Heavenly Father, my wonderful Heavenly Father, You're my wonderful Heavenly Father finally". I always liked that progression of recognition of who God the Father really is!

I like the progression.

 

[Tumbleweed64]

Trusting in the Lord, for me, means I give my life to Him, it is in His hands...

As for trust in people, I've been hurt and betrayed so much in my life, I tend to put up walls to protect myself

 

[bvwsmaker]

Trusting in the Lord, for me, means I give my life to Him, it is in His hands...

As for trust in people, I've been hurt and betrayed so much in my life, I tend to put up walls to protect myself

My walls to protect myself ended up a castle (though there is a little crumbling to them). A few select people can enter (the rest tend to get talked to from within my "comfort castle"; I'm inside, they're outside).

But your first statement is where the tension truly is. Do I trust in God's goodness enough to trust him to send the right people (even though they may have flaws that even rub me the wrong way) to help me, to be incredible friends that are trying to love me the best way they know how? That's where my actions tend to show that I don't!

I'd really like to take a wrecking ball to the castle! I look forward to seeing situations that I usually hide within but instead discover the "castle" wasn't even considered to be an option to go to. (Though there are times that does happen - It usually involves the equation of their need being greater than my fear. I'm usually moved to help without thinking about it. Most amazing times of my walk and it usually makes me look up in awe!!!)

 

[Tricia4Jesus]

Proverbs 3:5

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

Trust used here is the Hebrew word Batach (0982 Strongs)
To trust, to trust in
It is a verb

1) To have confidence.
2) To be bold.
3) To be secure.