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The following is a deeper look at the issue of trusting God. Sometimes we just begin to explore certain issues in Christianity to find out that we have only started to learn from Him.

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“Trust the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your

own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and

he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

●“Trust the Lord" to trust someone is to place oneself in the his or her hands. We have times when we have to place our well-being in the hands of a professional person to get us out of a circumstance in which we find ourselves. We also have to do this in our spiritual life. We learn we can trust God by spending time with Him.

●“. . with all your heart. . .” simply means completely, without holding back. God told the exiles in Babylon that they would find Him when they sought Him ‘with all your heart’ (Jeremiah 29:13) He also told Solomon that the people who claimed to belong to Him had to ‘seek my face.’ 2 Chronicles 7:14) A note in my Bible states this phrase means people are to seek God continually, without ceasing.

● “. . . and lean not on you own understanding.” As21Century people we have access to massive amounts of information. But we can only see what’s right in front of us. A dear friend says it like this: “Only God can see around the corners.” Our visibility is limited; His is complete. We have to learn to seek His guidance and to obey Him.

●“In all your ways. . .” Whatever we do. The Apostle Paul tells us to do as to the Lord. He applies it to simple, everyday things-even eating and drinking. (1 Corinthians 10:31)

●". . acknowledge Him . ." 1) Give God the credit. We find this easy to do when we realize we are nothing without Him. I recently received a letter young man who is in jail. His mother and her sister are church friends of mine. Since He’s been there, he has been reading the Bible and doing Bible studies. In his letter, he said something that made me think. His statement: “We don’t change ourselves; but we allow God to change us through His Word.” The more I think on this I believe that this is his statement of faith.

2) Praise Him. The word praise is mentioned in 40 books of the Bible. That figures out to almost 61% of them.

“ . . he will make your paths straight.” When we follow God’s instruction and guidance, our ways become easier for us. Isaiah 40:4 tells us the valleys made level and every hill brought down.When I find I have apprehensions about a meeting or an appointment I have, if I talk to God about it beforehand, He takes over and the meeting time is beneficial. It’s as if the Lord takes an iron to all my perceived problems. Of course, the opposite is also true.

David pens the observation that “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.” (Psalm 20:7) Even in our 21Century life, we see people who place their trust in what material ‘things’ they can amass. We see it more and more, even with our nation’s depressed economy. On the other hand, we also see those who are true to God place their trust in Him.

Which comes first trust or belief? As I see it, we have to believe in God and develop faith in Him before we can trust Him. Then we begin a victorious circle of more belief builds faith, which in turn creates more trust. Following that, more trust begets more belief and, again, more faith. I see this circle continuing through cycle after cycle until God calls us to live with Him.

Dear Lord God:

Please help us to believe in You more than we do; show us where we need to have stronger faith. Guide us as we learn to trust You each step of our walk. We will give You the praise and the glory. In the name of Jesus, we pray. AMEN

"Point of Reference" from Fred Price

A Broken Spirit And Contrite Heart