Baked Crab Rangoon 👍 Trust...

Proverbs 3:5

Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding.

One of the great promises of the Bible is found in the book of Proverbs…

The dictionary defines trust as: “assured reliance; confidence.”

And trusting God in all things is a foundational teaching, for faith in the Word of God pleases the Father and it is His will for our lives.  

But what does “trusting with all your heart,” really mean?

In the days that Solomon wrote this, there were two Hebrew words for trust.

They were similar yet had slightly different meanings.

The first meant that you trust someone… that you have the confidence in that person… knowing there, you will be safe.

For an example: if someone were to stop you and you are fearful for your safety…  so you run to someone who is stronger, whom you know will protect you. That’s one type of trust.

The second meaning for the word “trust” is the picture of a little child who is learning to walk.

His father reaches out a hand and says, “Come to daddy. I won’t let you down. I’ll catch you before you fall.”

This word is the one that is used in our scripture verse for today.

It means, “to rely upon… to have confidence in someone, to lean upon another.”

This is a beautiful picture, and here we are urged to, “Do it with all your heart,” no matter how foolish it may appear, because God will never let you fall.

I want to tell you a little story that I found while preparing this devotion…

*When missionary John Patton was translating the New Testament for the Native people on an island in the South Pacific…

He sought for a word which was the equivalent of the one which Solomon used, in our scripture today… and, in the language of the people he was striving to help, there was no equivalent, at least, none that he could find.

One day a native came into his little hut and, for the first time in his life, the native saw a chair that the missionary had built. Though it may seem strange to us that someone would never have seen a chair, however in many cultures, chairs, as we know them, are just not used.

The native asked Patton “What is that?” and pointed to the chair...

Patton then replied, “A chair--you can put your weight on it; it won’t let you down,” and ever so cautiously the native followed John Patton’s example and placed his full weight on the chair.

That’s when John Patten understood and thought “Ah, that concept is what Solomon was saying.”

And he translated today's text as, “You can put your full weight on God and not attempt to understand everything. Acknowledge God in everything you do, and God will direct your steps.”

You see, our problem is our hesitation to put our full weight on God when we can’t see the future. Today, as in Solomon’s day, our own understanding is often the hindrance to our trusting Him…

Yet, when we are convinced that God won’t lie to us, that He won’t let us down that He is accessible.

You see, the promises of His Word is the key that opens the door to His presence, which then allows us to rely upon His goodness to meet us.

We also must remember that how God will do something is His business…

But our failure to rest in Him and to trust Him is what will keep us spiritually depleted. How much better it is to rest in Him and realize His understanding goes far beyond ours.

Our commitment to the Lord must incorporate our whole spirit, soul and body.

Our trust in Him should be reflected in our life-style, our out-look, our attitude, our conversation and our character.

Our trust in Him should not only be in connection with the salvation of our soul, but should became the driving-force of our entire being, influencing the direction of our lives, for He knows what is best for each one of us.