What Trusting Means

Last week I wrote about trust, and how it is a good thing to trust God because God knows what He is doing.  But after I wrote it I started thinking, “Yeah, trust is great Kallie…but HOW? What does it look like to trust God? What does it even mean??”

I don’t have the answer to that question because as you saw, I am really just learning.  But here are some humble thoughts.

First, I spent my Saturday as all the cool kids do, in the library.  I was reading a book by David Benner for my thesis (which I am sure I will start talking about. A LOT.)  While I read this quote popped out at me:

 “Trust is always placed in someone or something, and our act of trust is an act of leaning into the object of trust with openness and expectant hopefulness.”

I love this quote so much.  I especially love the picture it gives of leaning into God (because He is our object of trust) with openness and expectant hopefulness. 
Now maybe, depending on how you view God, the idea of ‘leaning into Him’ might seem like a terrifying idea.  Try to imagine God as the most loving Father (because He is – 1 John 3:1) and we are just his children who can come and run to Him and sit in His lap whether we are celebrating life’s beauty or crying over life’s pain. 

I babysit for a women’s bible study, and there is one little girl who every time I sit down, comes running and plops herself down on my lap.  This to me is the perfect example of openness.  She knows she is welcome, and is confident in coming to me to receive love and comfort whether she is happy or sad.

God wants us to do this.  Trust means coming to Him, leaning into Him with openness.

I love the phrase he uses next: expectant hopefulness.  To hope is one thing, but to hope with expectation exemplifies trust. 

Lets make one point about this first: Expectation is different than expectations.  Expectations means we have a to do list for God.  We cannot transfer our human expectations onto God, because He is in control and knows what He is doing (but that’s a whole other topic for later J). 

We can however, hope with expectation.  It means that you know something is coming.  If we practice expectant hopefulness, we know that God has a plan and will fulfill it.  And with God, we can fully know that He will provide and answer and care for us, all of the time. We know that He works for our good.

Read this verse slowly, line by line:

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases.

His mercies never come to an end.

They are new every morning.

Great is thy faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23) 

I think in order to begin to trust God, we have to know who He is.  We have to learn that He is faithful and that throughout history, His people have experienced His faithfulness in a multitude of ways.  His steadfast love NEVER stops.  His mercies never end.  Every morning, He has new gifts for us. 

We also have to trust in God’s timing.  Even though my life right now is not what I thought it would be, I know it is His plan and His purpose being worked out in and through me.  Trust means humbly laying down your plans and expectations, and believing that His plans and timing are better than yours.  He is never late and never early.  His timing is perfect.

Think about it practically, how much do you trust someone you don’t know?  Probably not as much as you trust your parents or your best friend. Corrie Ten Boom said, “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”  In order to trust God, we have to know Him.  Only then can we lean into Him with openness and expectant hopefulness.