Belief or Trust?

God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need him. We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom, courageous in sea storm and earthquake, Before the rush and roar of oceans, the tremors that shift mountains. Jacob-wrestling God fights for us, God-of-Angel-Armies protects us. (Psalm 46:1 MSG)

If you face something uncertain today, how will you face it? Alone, attempting to build up your 'faith' to face it? Alongside a companion, both working hard to just 'make it through'? Or with the presence and safety of our heavenly Father, secure in his protection and built up in faith that isn't based in what we can 'muster up' in our own strength. We need one another, don't get me wrong. We need to build one another up in faith - this is God's plan. We cannot count on each other alone, though - we need God to be in the midst of us. The strength that comes when God is walking us through those difficult places is nothing we should take for granted. That strength comes because we have both set our hearts toward him, are seeking his will, and are steadfast in our commitment to continue to follow him, even when the way gets difficult.

We stand fearless, courageous beyond what others may understand. How? God fights for us! He protects us and we KNOW that deep within our hearts, not just in our minds. When faith takes root, we move away from just 'believing' God is real and we begin to 'trust' that he is both real and present. We can believe a whole bunch of things - some based in fact, other things based in some semblance of truth. We may not realize it, but we can know God without fully trusting him. We can hold on so tightly to the 'reins' of our lives that we never let him actually 'reign' in our lives. The moment we stop holding on so tightly to those reins he begins to place things in order that were nothing more than chaotic noise in our lives. The peace that comes when we move from believing into the place of actually letting go and trusting him is almost overwhelming, but we need it so desperately.

Why do we struggle with trusting him? It might stem from being a little too stubborn for our own good. It could come from a place of having trusted others here on this earth and they betrayed us in some manner. It is perhaps that we haven't really done much in the way of getting to know who he is, what he has done for us, and what he desires of those who come to him. Whatever the source of our struggle with trusting him fully, it is high time that we deal with it! We don't have to deal with it alone, though. He will actually help us when we ask him for that help to break down those barriers to trusting him fully. Most of the time, the beginning of a trust relationship with him begins by getting to know who he is. We find various aspects of his character in scripture, but only if we take time to really do more than just read it. We have to 'ponder' it a bit. Mull it over and over in our minds until it begins to reveal his character to us.

God isn't some mystical being in the heavenly realms. He is a deeply personal Father who desires nothing more than to have us get to know him for who he really is. He wants us to know the depth of his love as much as he wants us to see the strength of his power. We need to get to KNOW him - moving from a mere belief that he exists into a place where we TRUST that he is walking right here with us, even when we don't see or feel him. Just sayin!