One summer, when I was 10 or 11 years old, my father and I spent a great deal of time fishing together. We often would rise early in the morning or sometimes camp out overnight. During these days, we would have conversations about life, school, decisions that needed to be made.One of my father’s most common phrases was, “Trust me.” He would say something such as, “When you get older, you will discover that it is difficult to work a job…trust me on this.” Or, “You won’t ever understand girls…trust me on this.”
As I grew older, I sometimes noted the wisdom of my father’s thought. At other times, I questioned it. Still, throughout my life I have noted the attitude of trust that was evident in those early talks. Faith is the same way.
I am convinced—after 35 years of pastoral ministry—that many people struggle with faith because they struggle with trust issues—teenagers included. Perhaps they have seen their parents’ broken marriages, or they have seen a parent laid off from a job…These are broken trusts, and there are many others. We now live in a culture where trust is often difficult to find. We often hear the phrase, “Trust no one.”
However, faith in God demands our trust. As the writer of Proverbs noted, when we rely upon our own insights, we can miss God’s favor and leading. Instead of following the Creator, we can find ourselves following our own lead, our own plans.
Consider the faith you have. What level of trust are you following? How might your faith/trust be evident to those who are looking to your leadership and insights?
