Learning to Trust God
Is there an area in your life or ministry that you find difficult to trust God? Usually, this difficulty has to do with our past experiences and our present situation.
Open your Bible and read Luke 1:5-38. Let's compare Zacharias' and Mary's responses to the foretelling of the birth of their sons.
| Zacharias' Response |
Mary's Response |
18 Zacharias said to the angel, "How will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years."
20 "And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time."
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34 Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?"
38 And Mary said, "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.
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Zacharias wasn't a delinquent; he and his wife were righteous in the sight of God; they walked blamelessly in all the commandments. In other words, they were obedient.
Zacharias believed in God but there was an area in his life that he found it hard to trust God. I'm sure that they tried to have a child. We know they prayed to God (v13). After countless attempts, they probably had given up hope. So when the angel Gabriel announced the good news of John's impending birth, Zacharias asked, "How will I know this for certain?" (v18) ... he was asking for a sign because he didn't believe Gabriel's words.
From his perspective, it was impossible.
- Elizabeth, his wife was barren.
- Both were old.
He was struck dumb for his unbelief but he learned to trust God as shown in the subsequent events.
After the birth of the child, Elizabeth went against the accepted practice of naming the child after the father and insisted that the child be named "John" (v59-60). How did Elizabeth know what to name the child since Gabriel appeared only to Zacharias (v8,12-13)? Zacharias confirmed by writing on a tablet that the child's name was John (v63).
When I left fulltime ministry in June 1994, our savings would last my family about a year or so; I felt very insecure. In the subsequent three jobs, circumstances were such that I had to leave. In the corporate world, jobs are never secure. I felt more secure when I was in fulltime ministry even though I was earning less!
Intellectually, I know that my security should rest in the Lord; emotionally, it is a roller-coaster. I'm learning to trust God in this area of my life.
Let's look at another passage ... Mark 8:15-21
15 And He was giving orders to them, saying, "Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."
16 They began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread.
17 And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, "Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a hardened heart?
18 "HAVING EYES, DO YOU NOT SEE? AND HAVING EARS, DO YOU NOT HEAR? And do you not remember,
19 when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces you picked up?" They said to Him, "Twelve."
20 "When I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?" And they said to Him, "Seven."
21 And He was saying to them, "Do you not yet understand?"
Jesus' miraculous feeding of the 5000 and 4000 ought to have reminded them of Jesus' power; yet the disciples did not seem to learn from their past experiences. They had difficulty believing Jesus. In exasperation, Jesus accused them of being blind, deaf and with hardened hearts!
Again and again, the disciples failed Jesus ... asking for positions of power (Mark 10:35-37 cf 10:45); failing to keep watch and pray (Mark 14:34-41); and denying Jesus (Mark 14:66-72). Why did Peter weep? Because he really wanted to follow Jesus and be loyal to Him but he failed.
God knows all things; He knows our hearts ... our desire to be committed to Him. But we must take the step to trust Him ... take that step then the next; this is the way to grow your faith in God.
For I am confident of this very thing,
that He who began a good work in you
will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
Phil 1:6
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