June 23rd, 2021
One common thread running through the most recent sermon series “Finding My Way” is trust in the Lord. There are ample examples in the Old Testament of how Israel survived and thrived under His protection: Passover (Exodus 12:1-30), release from bondage (Exodus 12:31-36) and the parting of the Red Sea (Exodus 14), and the gift of Canaan as their new home (Numbers 34). A key question is how do these events that occurred a long time ago in a place far, far away foster our faith in Christ’s promises? They seem more like a Facebook page to me – the best of the best that has happened to someone else and, at least on the surface, not especially relevant to growing my trust in God.
This led me to reflect more deeply on how we come to trusting relationships with the people we value. In my life, those relationships have been built over long periods of time from hundreds of little things that, together, form a solid foundation of trust. And although this sounds obvious, it requires that we recognize the large and small ways in which our trusted friends impact our lives.
Is it not the same way in which at least some of us develop a truly trusting relationship with God? Being aware of His presence in our daily lives, observing the many small ways in which he protects us from harm and molds us, one turn of the Potter’s wheel at a time, into the people He created us to be. My personal trust in Him is not just the result of the two or three major life events where His involvement was impossible to ignore. It is rooted more in a recognition of the cumulative effect of an uncountable number of small daily actions as well as the way in which He has consistently answered my prayers – usually in a way other than what I expected.
As we’ve all waded through the morass of the past 18 months, I’ve turned more than usual to Psalm 91. He has been throughout this trial “my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”. It was not my belief that He could carry me safely to the other side but the expectation that He would carry me through that made all the difference.
One of my favorite traditional hymns is John Sammis’ “Trust and Obey”. I recently came across a rendition by Don Moen that contained an additional verse:
And ‘tis so sweet to trust in Jesus
Just to take Him at His word,
Just to rest upon His promise,
Just to know “Thus saith the Lord!”
‘Nuf said for me!
This led me to reflect more deeply on how we come to trusting relationships with the people we value. In my life, those relationships have been built over long periods of time from hundreds of little things that, together, form a solid foundation of trust. And although this sounds obvious, it requires that we recognize the large and small ways in which our trusted friends impact our lives.
Is it not the same way in which at least some of us develop a truly trusting relationship with God? Being aware of His presence in our daily lives, observing the many small ways in which he protects us from harm and molds us, one turn of the Potter’s wheel at a time, into the people He created us to be. My personal trust in Him is not just the result of the two or three major life events where His involvement was impossible to ignore. It is rooted more in a recognition of the cumulative effect of an uncountable number of small daily actions as well as the way in which He has consistently answered my prayers – usually in a way other than what I expected.
As we’ve all waded through the morass of the past 18 months, I’ve turned more than usual to Psalm 91. He has been throughout this trial “my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”. It was not my belief that He could carry me safely to the other side but the expectation that He would carry me through that made all the difference.
One of my favorite traditional hymns is John Sammis’ “Trust and Obey”. I recently came across a rendition by Don Moen that contained an additional verse:
And ‘tis so sweet to trust in Jesus
Just to take Him at His word,
Just to rest upon His promise,
Just to know “Thus saith the Lord!”
‘Nuf said for me!
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