For this week’s Worship Wednesday, Muriel shares with us about what to do when trusting is hard.
When Trusting is Hard
Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
Psalm 20:7
Trust is a tricky thing. I used to be a very trusting person to the point of being naive at times. But life has taught me trust will be broken and hurts will make trusting harder. Broken people will break your heart and your confidence.
I have been there so many times…
Betrayed. Lied to. Manipulated.
I was driving to visit with my Navy son in Great Lakes. He was finishing up his basic training. The road was inviting my thoughts down memory lane. A path I did not want to take. Flashes of my past flooded my heart afresh with the pain I felt. An honest cry built inside me, and I burst out to God, “How can I trust again?” Between sobs, I heard his gentle answer, “Do you trust me, child?”
Do you trust me?
Those four words have stayed with me ever since. Do I trust God? Yes, of course, I do! What do I have left if I do not believe God? Life would be unbearable at times without his love and guidance.
The clouds in the road started to clear and a different memory lane came into view.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.
Psalm 23:1-3
Right next to my life path, I could see that path of righteousness. He had been there through it all. Every hurt, every betrayal, every lie.
Trusting God is an invitation by the Good Shepherd to find the green pastures and the still waters. He alone knows the places that restore our souls.
Do you trust me?
I have failed God many times, but he never fails me.
Do you trust me?
More often than not, my clouded vision only saw the path with the pain and the hurt and failed to see his provision.
Do you trust me?
A simple question that has led me to love better those who hurt me. Broken people break trust, but we are all broken in some way. Chuck Girard wrote, “We put people in boxes, and we draw our hard conclusions. […] Our compassion and forgiveness sometimes seem in short supply.”
Do you trust me?
Four words that have beckoned me to trust him and him alone. Left to my own understanding of life and people, I would be a wretched mess. But God, in his infinite grace and mercy, calls me to trust him to restore me.
Maybe, like me, you have been hurt, betrayed, lied to, and your trust is so thin that it feels like one more incident will put you over the edge. Or maybe like me, you have failed to see the path that runs parallel to the one you are on. My prayer for you is that you, too, will hear the Shepherd’s voice and see how he has provided every step of the way and then watch for him to do it again.
Do you trust me? – Yes, always.
For more encouragement, have a listen to Do It Again by Elevation Worship.
by Muriel Gregory
