Trust...and obey.

So friends. We’ve talked about what trust is and what it means.  This week: one step in how to trust.

A friend in one of my classes said the other day, “Trust is tricky…because it is both the journey and the destination.”  In order to be trusting, you just have to trust.  You can’t really build your way up to it, you just have to do it.  When I think about practical steps we can take in order to trust God, obedience is number one.  Obedience is trust lived out.  Obeying and trusting God does not necessarily mean your life is going to be easy.  But it does mean you will have peace.

Imagine life as one giant path.  We each have our own path, and the choices we make determine which direction we are headed.  If we make choices that are in line with what God’s will is for our lives, we stay on the path.  If we make choices ourselves that go against what He wants for us, we can veer off and start making our own path. 

Any of you who hike know that if you go off of the pre-determined path and try to make your own it can be really difficult.  Usually you have to be much more careful where you step, and you may have to push aside all kinds of bushes and plants in order to get through.  It is a lot more work, and is more tiring than staying on the real path.  While we know that even the pre-determined path is going to hold hills, rocky patches, jumping over streams, etc…we know that it leads where we are supposed to go.  There is a plan and a purpose to going through all the tricky areas of the hike.

 So it is with our journey with God.  He does not promise us an easy path, in fact, He guarantees it won’t be.  But He promises to be with us and guide us through it all, if only we will trust Him. 

I will probably always have a lot of little kid analogies for you...but its a pretty accurate analogy between us and God most of the time (: Being a babysitter, I often get frustrated when I tell them not to do something and they do not listen.  When they don't listen to my advice (like, "Hey, don't do a flip onto that chair"..."No, lets not swing the lightsaber around the baby"...etc.) they or someone else ends up getting hurt. If they had just listened to me, they would avoid so much pain they inflict on themselves and others.  I often picture God doing one of those palm-to-forehead things when we do not listen and follow His advice for us.
I have seen first hand what comes when we trust and obey God, and what happens when we do not.  The path that we create for ourselves might look enticing, in fact it might even appear to be easier.  But it does not lead where we were intended to go, and often becomes a dangerous and painful detour that could have been avoided. 

I challenge you to think about your life right now – all the different aspects of it, but focus on the hardest situation you are currently facing.  Are you trusting God in that? What does it look like to trust God in that situation?  Are you choosing your own path, even though you know it might lead to heartache and pain?

Proverbs 3:6 says, “Seek His will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take” (NLT).

Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed” (NIV).

I know its not easy; it may seem easier to make your own choices and live the way you want to.  But ultimately, that will never go without harm. 

Proverbs 19:21: “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand” (ESV).

The encouragement is that God does not ever leave you, even when you wander onto your own path.   And He can and will use those detours for good.  He does not want us to submit to His will simply as a power trip; He wants us to submit and obey because He has the best in store for us.  If we will just trust, if we will wait, for His timing and His will – oh, the blessings we will experience!

I encourage you this week, listen to the Lord’s voice in your life and what He may be saying.  Ask Him and yourself if your choices reflect your trust in Him.  He is walking with You always, but His path leads to bigger and better things than yours ever could.