How do I trust God?

I know in my head what trust means and I believe that I trust God. What does that trust look like? I was reading another blog today and was posed a question as to whether trust is action. Is trust action? The question alone is a challenge.

Result of Trust

I consider the results of trust… the result of trust is that I know the other person will act in certain ways. And I think my response to that is also actions. I trust that you will arrive or call when you say, and you do; so, I wait expectantly. So perhaps trust is action.

I can also consider that I withhold action when I do not trust. I do not trust, so when I give a colleague cash for lunch, I write everything down to be sure my order is correct, and I get the correct amount of change. I act differently when there is no trust.

So, do I trust God?

I trust his word.

I trust his promises.

I trust his love.

I trust his character.

This is the what that I trust.

So then how do I trust the Lord?

This weekend, I read Everything Happens for a Reason and Other Lies I’ve Loved, by Kate Bowler, and I had to take notice of something she wrote. As she discusses various responses to the news that she has cancer, she says ‘I don’t know what the word “trust” means anymore, except there are moments when I realize it feels a lot like love,’ (p. 110).

I already define love as action, not feeling. So, you can see that within 24 hours I was confronted with this idea not once, but twice: trust as action.

Do I trust him? Do I act in trust or out of trust in my God?

This is no longer that I trust his word. This is that I trust me, my stuff, my relationships, my brokenness, my ministry, my all to God. This is about handing it all over to him, starting with myself.

Trusting like the ancients

This is about trusting like Job, when all is gone, no family, no job, miserable and untrusting spouse, do I still trust all that to Him? Do I trust my job, my marriage, my family, all – to Him? I guess this is where the ‘what’ of trust comes in. I trust him because I trust his word, promises, character, etc. (Ps. 145:13). I know him, and so I trust him.

This is trusting like Hosea, whose wife left him over and over. God told him to retrieve her, over and over. Do I trust Him – even when I will be made a fool in village square, even when I am rejected over and over by those I love? I trust him because he is faithful and provides for my every need (Phil 4:19). I trust him because he makes foolish the wisdom of the world (1 Cor. 1:20).

Letting Go

This trust is letting go of what I want or what I expect or what I would do because I trust the Creator of all to lead my life, my marriage, my ministry, to participate in my relationships, to repair my brokenness and to heal my pains.

It would be like telling the furniture maker that the chair is very well made and beautiful, but never sit in it. I can see its craftsmanship, I can see the intricate designs, I may note the sturdy legs and the fine contoured seat, I may inspect the back and arms of the chair. But if I never sit in it- if I don’t act on my words and observations, they are all for naught.

I may believe the chair is well designed and well made and fit for a king, but if I do not sit in it, do I believe these things? Do I believe the furniture maker is good?

If I believe that God is trustworthy and faithful, that his word is true and his promises are fulfilled but I never lean into them, then do I believe them? Do I believe God?

So, yes, I think trust is action. What do you think about trust and action?