The Ingredients of Trust

 

We Have to Know God!

Trusting God is learned behavior. We trust someone because we know that person. We believe whatever that person tells us is true. We have to KNOW that God is always steadfast and can always be trusted by His children.

We Must Be Patient

When we give something to God in prayer, we must be patient and wait for Him to act. I love the King James word for patient-long-suffering. In the Bible Study I attend, a gentleman said something about trust. He then said trusting involves waiting. This gentleman is correct in his thinking, To totally, absolutely trust God, we have to wait for Him to work.

We Must Believe that He Will Act on Our Requests.

Trust also involves reliance on the Lord. We cannot say we trust Him and decide to “do it our way”. When we choose to go our own way with a project or a simple action, we tell Him, as well as those around us, that we do not truly follow Him and His leading.

Now, just because we ask Him for something, He might not answer our prayer as we would like. might not think we are ready for the answer we ask. He may have something better in store for us. Maybe His answer is “Yes”, maybe it is “No”. Maybe it is “Not right now!” Whatever His answer to our petitions, He knows best and acts on our behalf.

Who Do We Trust?

 

Dreamstime.com

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” Proverbs 3:5

Trust in the Lord

These four words tell me that we are to do as they say. My question is; “Do we actually trust God for all things?”

As I write this, our nation awaits the outcome of a presidential election. This election cycle has been difficult to read about.

Also, our world seems very close to several more major conflicts that seem to cause predictions of another World War, thought to be nuclear.

As I see it, we truly need to Truly Rely Upon the Savior’s Timing.

As I sit here, I await a phone call from our son. He will tell his dad of a medical lab test he had done. My husband is not well and does not realize the danger he is in himself.

All I can do is pray and trust God for the outcome.

<B>with ALL your heart </B>

We humans have a tendency to hold back from one another. If we ask someone; “How are you?” We might hear: “I’m good!” When I hear this I often wonder if that person is truly all right. When I am asked that question I need to answer; “Living one day at a time.” Or “Trusting the Lord.”

We must trust the Lord without fail. I believe that, if we would practice trusting Him to that extent, we would be better representatives of Him to the world.

lean not on your own understanding.

We are finite beings. God is infinite. We know not even a thimbleful of what God knows. We grouse about things when those things don’t turn out as we would like.It is possible that we truly did not know that what we desired was not good for us at that time.

Absolute Trust

 

In re-reading a chapter in my book for Sunday school, I ran across I ran across the term “absolute trust”. This term caught me off guard.

A quick look in my dictionary told me that absolute had several meanings. I believe the best definition in this instance is not limited, without any restrictions.

Absolute trust can only become something we have when we completely turn everything over to Jesus. It is a state of our hearts that we achieve only as we mature in our faith.

Absolute trust must be something we have every day; this is not just a Sunday morning trust or faith. We have to exercise trust in order for our trust to grow.

As I apply what I learn of this term, I will look at events and my surroundings in a different light.

Prayer

Father God: Please allow me to learn to trust You without reservation especially

when I am confronted by new circumstances in my life. In the Name of Jesus, I pray. AMEN

Trust Fall

 

Rick Warren Quote

I am with you always, to the end of the age. Matthew 28:20 (NKJV)

This is another entry based on the devotional we are studying in Sunday school,

Finding Soul Rest by Curtis Zachary.

In this section, he talks of times when a person stands on an elevated level and turns his or her back to those on the ground and falls backwards into the arms of those standing below.

I have never done this and I doubt that I ever will. When I first read his thoughts, I thought of Charlie Brown and Lucy Van Pelt and her holding the football until the last second and then pulling it away. We all know the result of this maneuver—Charlie Brown falls on his back.

A fairly young woman in our class said she only trusts God. My own thoughts are that certain people I know have a strange sense of humor and would think it funny to do something similar to Lucy. Therefore, I have chosen not to try this exercise, ever.

I am learning to trust God with more of my life. This has been a very good word for me to study this year.

When I called my Sunday school leader about my thoughts on this particular devotion. She remembered that trust was my word for this year.

Trusting God helped me to stay calm when I was working to get registrations for Vacation Bible School. We had a small school but it was a good one.

Our church congregation is trusting God to heal our pastor who is on medical leave until at least next February. He seems to be improving each time I see him. He and his wife come to Sunday services and have returned to our Thursday morning Bible Study when they can.

Trust

I like acronyms. This is one of my favorites.

Totally

Relying

Upon the

Savior’s

Timing.

The Makeup of Trust

What do we know about how to trust God?

Sometimes we ‘say’ we trust Him but turn right around and do something our way; we don’t wait on Him.

We have to have patience in order to wait for God to remedy our concern. There are times the Lord has to teach us something before He is ready to take care of our request.

We sometimes have to wait for God to answer our prayers because we may have asked for something that He knows we are not supposed to have or not ready to have.

Trusting Him

 

candidlychristian.com 

Many sorrows shall be to the wicked, But he, who trusts in the Lord, mercy shall surround him.

Psalm 32:10 (NKJV)

We say we trust God, but do we? Sometimes don’t we mouth those words to those around us and deep inside we think, “I know what I am doing.”?

Recently, I woke up in the wee hours of the morning. We were taking a daytrip to a reunion of the class my husband would have graduated with had his family not moved away from there.

I noticed something about my vision. It was not good. The next few weeks were going to be busy ones for me. I give a Children’s Moments message at church one Sunday a month. I was planning to do preregistration for Vacation Bible School for three Sundays in a row. We had to prepare for this event in the meantime.

Add into this mix my getting my donated items ready for the Church Rummage Sale, which comes the end of Father’s Day week. Plus, how was I going to get to church on Sundays and to Bible Study on Thursdays?

All these dates were running through my mind as I lay there trying to go back to sleep. Suddenly, God planted my WOTY, word of the year, TRUST, in my mind.

I focused on that precious word and fell back asleep. When I woke again, I checked my vision and saw that it was restored to where I could see pretty well.

My main concern was how was I going to get done what I needed to do? Get decorations for my VBS preregistration-registration table. How was I going to get my donations to the Church for the rummage sale? I didn’t think I should trust myself driving and my Hubby shouldn’t be driving when he hasn’t been able to get the proper sleep he needs.

Add to that the Zoom meeting I needed to attend for our Conference Prayer Network. Also, my printer seemed to have a mind of it’s own.

So far, God has taken care of most of these needs. God knows my needs and I have to trust Him. I have to praise Him for his help and guidance through these issues.

Trust, at All Times

 

In God is my salvation and my glory;

The rock of my strength,

And my refuge is in God.

Trust in Him at all times, you people;

Pour out your heart before Him;

God is a refuge for us.

Psalm 62:7-8 (NKJV)

Words of David

David gives testimony to what roles God has in his life.

God is David’s;

Salvation

God and God alone saved David.

Glory

David continually gave glory to God

Rock of his strength

God is the source of what David can do, can withstand.

David then tells his readers, and us, to rely on God at all times. He urges the people to tell God all that is on their hearts. He goes so far to tell them that God is a safe place for all of us.

From time to time, we all have circumstances that enter our lives that seem so difficult to those around us. A personal illness, a family illness, a long-standing situation between ourselves and others. When we trust God for the outcome, we can get through the circumstances.

A lady I saw recently told that her daughter was in hospice care. The lady wondered why we have to go through such prolonged times of tough times. She had heard that we are to learn humility. I believe we are allowed to learn to trust God more, to trust God with everything-everything we have and everything we are.

Blessed People

 

Christ our Pilot, Sallman 

                                       Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust

and does not respect the proud nor such as turn aside to lies.

                                                                                                       Psalm 40:4 (NKJV)

Words of David

From time to time, we experience difficult things in our lives-sudden serious illness in our families, loss of employment, death of a loved one,- events that we have to face even though they seem to be hard to understand.

David tells us that the person who trusts God is blessed. He further defines one who trusts as one who chooses not to respect those who think too highly of themselves, or one who comes across as being a ‘know it all’.

Also, one who trusts in God will refrain from listening to those who repeatedly abandon the truth for lies.

When we follow the Lord, we have all of His blessings for us and His power keeping us safe. Then we are truly blessed.

Trusting God Yields Happiness

 

He who heeds the Word wisely will find good; and whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he. Proverbs 16:20 (NKJV)

Words of Solomon

I found a form of this verse in a gift book that I ran across in my living room. The book is entitled “Growing Through Prayer”.

I am certain that each of us has experienced not heeding God’s Word in the way we should.

When we choose to think that we know a better way to do something than God we do not heed His Word. We find ourselves in a fix, and it may be a while before we can say that we are out of trouble.

However, when we heed God’s Word and His leading, we find ourselves more relaxed and

possibly even have a pleasant outlook about things.

When we give our worries and concerns over to God and trust Him for the outcome, Solomon tells us we achieve happiness when we trust in the Lord.

This sounds so simple. There are times when I have wandered away from trusting Him and have taken on some issue that either is to big for me to handle or should not really concern me. That’s when I find myself getting unhappy and, yes, possibly depressed.

Prayer: Father God, please forgive me for those times I have not trusted You. I am sorry for rushing into things that are too big for me to handle, especially those things that only You can remedy. In Jesus’ Name, I pray. Amen

God Alone

 

Jesus and the children at our church's prayer walk.

         I will both lie down in peace and sleep; For You alone, O LORD make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 4:8 (NKJV)

Words penned by David.

Having had too many nights with either minimal or no sleep, I picked up my Bible and reread this verse. A dear friend shared it with me many years ago.

What I realized as I went through another sleepless night was that I was not trusting God for some things going on around me that may affect me.

This verse tells me that David would be able to rest in peace and then sleep. He then tells the LORD that He alone keeps him safe.

How did God keep David safe? By being with him during the times Saul was chasing him. Also, when his son was hunting him down.

Each of us will have times when we feel that our back is against the wall or that we are in a circumstance by ourselves. God is with us as we go through those rough spots.

Our pastor has spent the past 50 days recovering from a stroke, there were days that it was one step forward followed by two steps backward. Prayer has kept him and his wife going as he has received intense therapy at a hospital in a neighboring city. He will be coming home in four days.

Prayer: Father God. Thank You for being with us during the difficult times in our lives. Thank You for reminding us that You are always are with us, guiding us through those times. In Jesus’ Name, I pray. Amen

.

God Alone

 

SlideServe

I will both lie down in peace and sleep;

For You alone, O LORD make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 4:8 (NKJV)

Words penned by David.

Having had too many nights with either minimal or no sleep, I picked up my Bible and read this verse. A dear friend shared it with me many years ago.

What I realized as I went through another sleepless night was that I was not trusting God for some things going on around me that may affect me.

This verse tells me that David would be able to rest in peace and then sleep. He then tells the LORD that He alone keeps him safe.

How did God keep David safe? By being with him during the times Saul was chasing him. When his son was hunting him down.

This issue of trust is connected to faith. I have learned that we must have faith in order to trust God without reservations. Years ago, the pastor I sat under said that a lot of people practice “Billy Goat” religion. They say they believed in God, then the next word they said was.”But”.

A scripture passage I found recently has given me pause. “Behold the proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith.” Habakkuk 2:4 (NKJV) I believe I need to learn to live by faith more than I do.

Prayer,

Father God. Please help us, Your children, to trust you more as we live each day for You. Guide us as we make decisions and as we talk to those we meet in our daily activities, In Jesus’ Name, I pray. AMEN

Father God, We Trust You

 

'''Trust the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Acknowledge Him in all you do and He will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)

On the afternoon of January 29^th, 2024, our church office put out a prayer request for our pastor who was in the ICU. His wife had taken him to the ER. The entire church received the same message.

I texted his wife with a prayer that evening. I called my best friend for prayer. I received a call from a young woman who had heard of the pastor’s circumstance.

On Tuesday, January 30, the pastor’s wife texted me to with an update. Pastor had had a mild stroke.

Since last July, we are in a new denomination. During our Mustard Seed prayer time, I was told to add a certain name to our prayer list. It was a name I did not recognize. I asked who he was. He is going to be our interim pastor. (In one day’s, time the district had arranged for someone to come in and carry out Pastor Rick’s duties.) I like the way this has been handled.

One of the men in our local church volunteered to bring us a message this past Sunday. So, things are going on.

I found myself telling God that I knew we had to trust Him for the outcome, and we will. I find myself telling Him that for some of my personal issues and now for this circumstance facing the church.

I believe God knew Pastor and his wife, Cheryl would have this circumstance enter their lives. I also believe that they will trust the Lord, implicitly.

My best friend once told me she trusted God implicitly. I am learning that I can, like her, trust God without reservation. As I have shared with some in a Facebook group, I believe God chose this word “trust” for me for this year. I learn something about it each week.

A Closer Look at My Word

 

fineartamerica.com

I participate in a Facebook group called One Word 2024. This is the exercise we are asked to do for January.

___________________________________________________________________________________

1.Where Is My Word?

My word, TRUST, appears on my journal cover. I try to write in it every day; so, I see it every day. It is in a gift of prayer cards that sometimes guide me when I pray. It appears on some small note pads I received from a friend.

I read several devotional books. Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest has several entries dealing with my word. I also have run across my word in The Upper Room and Our Daily Bread.

2.What Does My Word Look Like?

Picture, if you will, a small child sitting on his or her father’s lap. The child has his or her eyes focused on the father’s face as he speaks. The child is engrossed in hearing what the father says.

3. Why This Word?

God chose this word for me. I had one word “chosen”. Then I found another word that seemed to speak to me. But, as, I was finishing praying for someone, I heard “she has to have trust for the outcome.” As I typed the beginning of this post, I received a phone call from a dear friend from church. A lady, for whom we have been praying, could be very close to meeting Jesus in the next week. We are and have been trusting God in all this.

God’s Presence Gives Us Rest

 

Daily Prayer USA

And He said, “My presence will go with you and I will give you rest.”  Exodus 33:14(ESV)

Words of God spoken to Moses.

Moses has a lengthy talk with God. He seeks God’s help in understanding his role in this journey.

God tells him that he (Moses) will not be alone in this part of the journey. God would be with Moses throughout the journey.

Moses responds in a forthright comment, “If Your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here.” (Verses15-16) Moses knows he cannot lead the nation by himself, In fact, it sounds like if God isn’t with him, Moses asks God not to take the people any farther.

In our present day lives, we sometimes need reassurance that God’s presence is with us as we travel through this life. Each of us has faced, is facing, or will face times when we doubt that we can go on without God being with us. When we ask Him to accompany us through those hard times, He guides us through them.

David said it in Psalm 23:4;

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

No matter how tough the circumstance, God is there with each of us. Because of His love for us.

He Rewards Faithfulness

 

But, without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV)

When we go before the LORD, we must believe He is who He says He is. The writer of Hebrews tell us without our believing in Him we cannot please Him. When we go before His throne, there are certain things we must believe:

* He will listen to our pleas.

       If our hearts are in tune with Him.

* He will answer our requests.

      In the way that is best for us and His plan.

* He will reward us for our efforts.

      His rewards may be a lightness of heart.

      He may give us new insight into a concern or a problem.

However, we must concentrate on Him while we seek His guidance.

“But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.“ Matthew 6:6 (NKJV)

Sometimes, we can follow Matthew 6:6 when we are in a crowd. Other times we can do obey this scripture by physically removing ourselves from the circumstance that needs our prayer.

Being Faithful

 

cloudfront.net

His Lord said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant: you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.” Matthew 25:21 (NKJV)

The disciples asked about the end times and the Rapture. Jesus told them several parables that relate to the end times and His return. One was about being faithful with what we have.

A wealthy man prepares to travel a great distance from home. He leaves three of his household servant in charge of some talents (money). After a lengthy absence, the wealthy man returns. Two of the servants had made the talents work for them, doubling the amount each was given. They were praised and rewarded for their efforts. Their master said they were faithful. The third servant did nothing with what he was given. The master took away the gifts and gave them to the other two servants.

Do we see many people being faithful to the LORD or even to each other in our world today? Are we as faithful to God as we were when we first gave our hearts to Him? This is something I have to deal with often.

We all want to hear God tell us that we were faithful over what He has given us.

Because of His Faithfulness

 

Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His mercies fail not. They are new every morning; Great is your faithfulness. Lamentations3:22-23 (NKJV)

Did you ever have ‘one of those days’ when nothing went the way you planned or wanted it to go? Because we are human, we all have them. Not sleeping at night, forgetting where you put something you need to function, needing to alter plans to accommodate someone else are just a few of the ones we could face in our days.

Because we belong to God, we can function in spite of the plans that go awry. He blesses us with the strength to continue with what we need to do.

My study Bible lists some advantages because of God’s faithfulness:

*We can have confidence when we pray.

*We can conquer evil and temptation.

*We can praise Him.

*We can have courage when we are afraid.⁽¹⁾

We all must rely on His faithfulness as we go through our lives. When we do we become stronger in our witness and testimony for God.

_____________________

(1.)Jeremiah Study Bible, Dr. © 2013 David Jeremiah Inc, Worthy, Hatchette Book Group NY, NY. Page 1045.

Falling in Love with Jesus

 I heard a pastor sing this song this morning. I loved the words. I hope you will like it as well.

Paul’s Description of Love

 

fineartamerica.com

 

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth, bears all things, believes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will cease, whether there are tongues, they will cease, whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 1 Cor 13: 4-8 (NKJV)

 

Paul describes the highest attributes of love.

 

 love suffers long

 The King James Version says, ‘long suffering’, this translates to the modern phrase ‘is patient’.

 

 and is kind

When we show kindness to others, we show love to them. Our action may be very small, but it may mean the world to that other person.

 

 love does not envy

When we love as Jesus loves and another person receives something that is good, a loving response is for us to be happy for them.

 

 love does not parade itself, is not puffed up

When we love as Jesus loves we are not to call attention to ourselves or what we have done, especially when that something makes us look good in the eyes of others.

 

 does not behave rudely

When we truly love as Jesus loved will not do anything that another person would consider rude.

 

does not seek its own,

When we show the love of Jesus, we do not do things with selfish motives.

 

 is not provoked,

When we love like Christ, we can’t let another person ‘push buttons’ and cause him or her to get angry.

 

thinks no evil,

When we truly love with the love of Christ, we will not say bad things or wish them on those around us.

 

does not rejoice in iniquity,

 When we love as Christ loves, we will not be happy when anyone around us sins.

 

but rejoices in the truth, when we truly love as Jesus does, we are grateful for the truth that sets us and those around us free from their struggles and their sins.

 

 bears all things

When we love as Jesus loves, we learn to be strong and wait for His outcome to a circumstance.

 

believes all thing

When we love as Jesus loves, we believe all the good things we know about others.

 endures all things.

 

Because of Jesus’ love for the people God had created, He went to the cross to make us acceptable (sinless) before His Father. When we love someone, we attempt to tolerate their unkind thoughts and their bad behavior.

 

Love never fails.

The Love of God is eternal. Even when we mess up, He is there waiting for us to seek forgiveness of our wrongdoing and then guidance to make things right with those we have hurt.

 

prophecies. . . will cease

As a teenager, I heard some ‘profound’ prophecies that never came to pass. We have heard some prophecies in the recent past that also have not happened. God is in control.

 

 tongues. . . will cease

When we all learn to love as Jesus did, we will be able to live our lives without hearing “wagging tongues”, we will be so busy praising God and doing new tasks He will assign us.

 

 knowledge. . . will vanish away We know procedures of certain activities we do to get through our jobs, through our daily chores, through raising our children. As technology has changed those procedures, those new ways may also be done away with when Christ comes again.

 

 

The Gift of Wisdom

 

quotefancy.com 

Dear Blogging Friends: I have been dealing with taking a new med that seems to have given me several side effects. Hence, my absence from here for a good week or more. I appreciate your prayers that I am able to get through this issue as I am supposed to take this med for a lengthy period of time. Thank you, in advance.

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and sincere.

                                                                                                             James 3:17 (NIV)

                We hear a lot about wisdom and about knowledge. I once heard that knowledge                               is what we know but wisdom is how we apply that knowledge.

James tells us that wisdom loves peace. Sometimes, we must let God’s wisdom guide us through difficult circumstances. These can be some personal issues or the circumstances a friend has.

He further tells us that wisdom is considerate. We have times when we must put ourselves in another’s shoes before we decide how to respond to a situation.

When we seek God’s wisdom, we must submit to His Will and His direction. Even though doing that goes against our humanity.

When we exercise our gift of mercy, we must be able to extend our hands in times of another’s need.

In exercising this gift of wisdom, it is important to remember not to ‘take sides’ in an issue. And we must be sincere about our words, thoughts, and deeds.

                A lady from church was terribly sick last month. I called her to check on her one time during her illness (COVID)  and decided not to bother her again. When she tried to talk, she got to coughing so hard that she really could not talk. I chose to pray for her as I could. She called me when she got to feeling a lot better. I shared with her why I had not checked on her more than one time. She understood.

                One of my cousins called me this afternoon, she had COVID back in November. In our conversation, she said something about her emphysema worsening. She then told me it was from the COVID. She had the original COVID six months ago.  We are both learning about using wisdom considering our individual health circumstances.

God is Our Refuge

Jesus Quotes and God Thoughts, Wordpress.con 

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High

Will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD,

“He is my Refuge and my fortress, My God in who I trust.”

Surely, he will save you from the fowler’s snare

And from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers,

And under his wings, you will find Refuge.   

                 Psalm 91:1-4 (NIV)

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High

The Psalmist speaks of those who live their lives as close to God as they can. He speaks of those who dwell in the shelter of God. One who dwells at a certain place lives there, not just visits. They spend a quantity of their time in prayer, in service to God, working for Him.

will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

When hardships come to those who live for the LORD, they go to Him in prayer and search the scriptures for guidance. When decisions must be made, those people pray for special direction to arrive at the correct answer for them and those around them.

I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress,

Believers who trust in the LORD will tell others that they find protection and strength that fortifies them in the face of personal trials.

my God in who I trust.

Believers rely on God for all their needs.

They depend on God for guidance and direction in every phase of their lives.

They do not get upset when things do not go as they had planned.

Surely, he will save you from the fowler’s snare

God watches over His children and leads them away from personal danger. Yes, there are times we wonder about this considering the aftermath of a tornado or an earthquake. All we can say is God is in control. 

and from the deadly pestilence.

Yes, even during this COVID-19 pandemic, when we abide by the rules set down by those who have devoted their lives to scientific research and study, we will be safe and keep others safe.

He will cover you with his feathers,

God will protect us. He will give us what we need to keep us safe from danger. However, we must be mindful of certain guidelines we have to keep us free from peril.

and under his wings, you will find refuge.

When we abide in Jesus, we find comfort and safety. We can rest and relax. Our minds are not encumbered by thoughts that plaque us and rob us of rest and peace.