“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”
Proverbs 3:5 (NIV)
The National Review ran a story the day after Memorial Day that was titled, “’Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning,’ In Cruise We Trust.” The article brought out the belief that a new movie from Tom Cruise can boost the box office just as his character, Ethan Hunt, can save the day and make our world safer. It’s nice to have those we can turn to and trust.
Now this headline was written in a tongue-in-cheek manner, but I think it’s true that we put our trust in others. We like to believe that others will come through for us. In his book, Talking to Strangers, Malcolm Gladwell writes about the ways we “default to truth.” We like to believe that others are trustworthy. We want to believe the best about others. Even when someone is doing something that looks suspicious we want to believe that individual is up to something good, not something bad. If we didn’t default to truth, then we would never trust someone.
Trust is often defined as the belief that someone is reliable and will behave in a way we expect. This belief is foundational in the key relationships in our lives, whether they are family, church, community, or work. It is often said that “once trust is broken, it can take a long time to heal.” That’s how important this quality is!
Trust is found in the Bible. The ancient Israelites put their trust in Moses that he would lead them out of Egypt and bring them into the Promised Land. Jesus put his trust in the disciples and they returned that firm belief. The apostle Paul had a firm conviction that others would welcome him as he traveled great distances to spread the Gospel.
Of course, it’s easy to trust people when times are good. The challenges come when times are difficult. While we don’t want to lose faith in others, we want to put our ultimate trust in God. Trusting God means that we surrender to the Great Almighty. It means that while we may not comprehend what is taking place around us, we know that God is present.
We are living in some interesting times. Might we continually turn to the one who will never let us down! God’s track record is perfect. This is something we can hold on to!
Peace and blessings, Pastor Scott