I loved watching my children sleep when they were infants. I can still picture their little eyelashes dark against their pale skin and the soft blanket tucked beneath their chubby pink cheeks as they occasionally allowed a contented sigh to escape from their tiny lips. But these idyllic moments lasted only as long as they were fed, dry, not in pain, and loved. WHO kept them content? Well, the people who loved them! As infants, they totally trusted us to meet all their needs. And…we WANTED to take care of them.
Ah, how much more God wants to meet OUR every need!
Ironically, as soon as my children learned to say “NO” to me, they also began to ride the struggle-bus. Their rebellion against the rules boiled down to a lack of trust. They thought their way was better than mine. And the harder they fought me, the less I could bless them. There was no way I was going to take a child—kicking and screaming—to “enjoy” the zoo. My, my, it’s really hard to give good things to someone who doesn’t trust us, isn’t it?
This is exactly what WE experience—when we fail to completely trust God.
The desire to live independently from God was original sin. What’s insane is that this lack of trust in God is especially manifested when we go through trials. Even though we have an omnipotent Father, we act like desperados and try to solve problems on our own. Now, my friend, this doesn’t mean when we have problems—we do nothing. It just means we turn to God FIRST. But—we must remember:
- God doesn’t need our help with our problems.
- If we want His help—He must be the LORD of our life.
Furthermore, we must remember that trusting in ourselves is a serious sin!
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.”
(Jeremiah 17:5-6)
I can’t say that I’ve ever considered I might be “cursed” for trusting in myself but…look at the great contrast between the one who trusts in himself and one who trusts in God.
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
(Jeremiah 17:7-8)
When we do life trusting in our own strength, we shrivel like a shrub in the desert. When we give our whole heart and all our trouble to God, we flourish like a tree planted by the river of water.
Now do you see why fully trusting in God is such a gift? Trusting God is the best gift you will give yourself today.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 https://bible.com/bible/114/pro.3.5-6.NKJV
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