Trusting God

As the sun went down that evening, people throughout the village brought sick family members to Jesus. No matter what their diseases were, the touch of his hand healed every one. Luke 4:40 (NLT)
In the busyness of life we sometimes forget what an awesome God we serve. The above verse is a reminder of the power of the name of Jesus. This same chapter also tells about Jesus saying to a demon possessed man, “Be quiet, come out of this man.” Those watching the event said, “What authority and power this man’s words possess! Even evil spirits obey him, and they fled at his command!” (4:35-46)

That same Jesus indwells every believer in all His power, glory and wisdom. Only our trust unleashes this mighty resource. Many of us live as if we don’t believe that. We worry, grumble and complain rather than drawing on the resources of heaven. We simply “have not because we ask not.”

God’s desire for us is to trust God for every ordinary moment of the day, not just those times when we are in a crisis. We are to live in the conscious awareness of His presence, while living out the Biblical principal of “apart from Him I can do nothing.” We are to live every day and every moment with a conscious awareness of our need for Him.

I am convinced that one of the benefits of being a grandparent is that you once again have a child that needs you. What a joy to hear my grandchildren say, “Papa, I need your help.”

If it brings joy to my heart to know that my grandchildren need me, how much more does it bring joy to the heart of our Heavenly Father when our life demonstrates that we need Him?

We are wired to need God. To live otherwise is to have a spiritual disconnect. We live out our faith by learning to trust God in every situation, not just during difficult times.

Bible teacher Haddon Robinson tells a story about trust from an event that occurred with his friend in South Alabama.

“Years ago, Monroe Parker was traveling through South Alabama on one of those hot, sultry Alabama days. He stopped at a watermelon stand, picked out a watermelon, and asked the proprietor how much it cost. “It’s $1.10,” he replied. Parker dug into his pocket, found only a bill and said, “All I have is a dollar.”
“That’s ok,” the proprietor said, “I’ll trust you for it.” “Well, that’s mighty nice of you,” Parker responded, and picking up the watermelon, started to leave. “Hey, where are you going?” the man behind the counter demanded. “I’m going outside to eat my watermelon.” “But you forgot to give me the dollar!” “You said you would trust me for it,” Parker called back. “Yeah, but I meant I would trust you for the dime!” “Mack,” Parker replied, “You weren’t going to trust me at all. You were just going to take a ten-cent gamble on my integrity!”

The ultimate goal of every believer is to trust God for every situation. You can’t live a fully surrendered life if you are only taking a “ten-cent gamble on God’s integrity.”

“Trust in the Lord with your whole heart, and do not lean on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)