TRUSTING GOD
The Lord is my strength and my shield;
My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped;
Therefore, my heart triumphs,
And with my song I shall thank Him.
Oswald Chambers, 1874-1917, posed a question in his book, My Utmost for His Highest, that continues to speak to me days after reading it. Tucked in a paragraph discussing “perfect trust in God,” he writes:
“…perfect trust in God—such a trust that we no longer want God’s blessings, but only want God Himself.
Have we come to the point where God can withdraw His blessings from us without our trust in Him being affected?”
Wow! That poignant message hits me boldly right in the heart! I can’t get it off my mind!
The question that Chambers posed, though, is one of reality. It isn’t merely a philosophical idea for an interesting debate. What happens when blessings diminish—or even disappear completely? What happens to my trust in God when life becomes overwhelmingly complex? What happens to yours?
When——
* Every day seems like a challenge—frustrations mount up with no relief in sight?
* Someone receives an unexpected (and unwanted) medical diagnosis?
* The one I love most dearly dies?
* Challenging children, spouses, neighbors, and co-workers become the norm for days or weeks at a time?
* No matter what I do, something seems to fall apart—one crisis after another?
* There is too much month and too little money?
I like my comforts. I like feeling healthy. I happily recount the successes of my children and grandchildren. I praise God for my “blessings.” I grew up singing The Doxology: Praise God from whom all blessings flow… My joy was complete when I sat next to Daddy in church and heard his beautiful bass voice belting out those words of praise! I still love to sing praises.
But what happens to my praise when I don’t see the blessings flow? My heart yearns to trust and praise my God, regardless of whether I receive tangible blessings or not. I choose to TRUST.
If every blessing disappeared for you today, like it did for Job, would you still trust God and praise Him? If life continued to press in, would you trust God and talk to Him, or would you focus on dealing with your issues in the best way you could?
Then Job answered the Lord and said:
“I know that You can do everything,
And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning;
Write a personal statement of commitment to God, just as Job did in Job 42:2. He attested to God’s faithfulness before he even knew God had a plan for restoring his blessings. How will you respond to the question Chambers posed?
Delve Deeper: The evangelist and teacher Oswald Chambers, born in 1874, died at the age of 43. His wife compiled many of his sermons into books. The devotional I mentioned earlier, My Utmost for His Highest, has become a regular part of my reading. Read about other modern-day men and women of faith: Corrie ten Boom, Jim and Elizabeth Elliot, George Mueller, Mother Teresa, and others. What helped them remain strong even when the blessings seemed to wane?