In God we trust

Proverbs 3:5-12 Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Don’t assume that you know it all. Run to God! Run from evil! Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life! Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best. Your barns will burst, your wine vats will brim over. But don’t, dear friend, resent God’s discipline; don’t sulk under his loving correction. It’s the child he loves that God corrects; a father’s delight is behind all this. (MSG)

On my way into work this week I was thinking about the phrase: In God We Trust. This got me thinking about the meaning of trust and today’s world in trusting God.

"In God we trust" was adopted as the official motto of the United States in 1956. The phrase appears to have originated in "The Star-Spangled Banner", written during the War of 1812. The fourth stanza includes the phrase, "And this be our motto: 'In God is our Trust.'"

Trust - reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; confidence.

Trust is at the core of all meaningful relationships. Without trust there can be no giving, no bonding, and no risk-taking. You can learn to trust someone perfectly--but that's risky. Even highly trustworthy people can always change.

But how do we trust someone, especially someone that we cannot see or touch? Answer: by spending time with them and getting to know them. Okay, so how do I get to know someone that I cannot see or touch, like God? Answer: by spending time reading the Bible and talking to God.

You say: What talking to someone that I can’t see or touch? How do I know that he is listening or will answer me? Trust me; He will hear you and He will answer you. The Bible is God’s words and He clearly tells us that He can be trusted.

Psalm 9:10 (NIV) - Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.

Psalm 32:10 (NIV) - Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts in him.

Psalm 130:4 (NIV) But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you. He is the only one that will forgive you.

2 Corinthians 5: 6-8 - That’s why we live with such good cheer. You won’t see us drooping our heads or dragging our feet! Cramped conditions here don’t get us down. They only remind us of the spacious living conditions ahead. It’s what we trust in but don’t yet see that keeps us going. Do you suppose a few ruts in the road or rocks in the path are going to stop us? When the time comes, we’ll be plenty ready to exchange exile for homecoming. (MSG) So in this sense He gives us progress.

Psalm 28:7 (NIV) - The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.  This verse shows that He gives us power and strength.

1 John 5:13-15

The Reality, Not the Illusion

My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God’s Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he’s listening. And if we’re confident that he’s listening, we know that what we’ve asked for is as good as ours. (MSG)

But most importantly He is the ONLY one that can grant you eternal life.

So, once you get to know God, He is the ONLY one that you can trust unequivocally.

Still do not trust me? I challenge you to try for 1 week, talking to God and asking Him to show Him in your life. Then wait with your heart and eyes open. Watch Him work, you will see it.

Trust me.