Do you trust God?

What in the world is "trust"? Can "trust" be qualified? What I am getting at is... oh, let's start over.

Let's define the word. Trust is a firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something. It is confidence placed in a person or thing. It is dependence on someone or something.

Can a person live without ever trusting someone or something? No.

You think I'm wrong? Let's check it out.

Are you sitting on a chair or standing up? Either way, you are trusting something. You either trust the chair to hold you -- as I am doing right now -- or you trust the floor to hold you; and the floor is holding the chair. I don't care if you weigh 75 pounds or 575 pounds: you trust the floor, chairs, the bed, even a motor vehicle to hold you; which proves you trust their manufacturers. So we just proved that everyone on earth trusts someone or something. It's just a matter of in what or in whom we will place that trust.

Next: can "trust" be qualified? That is, can you partially trust someone? Or is it an all-or-nothing concept?

When I was 5 years old, we lived in El Cajon, Calif. My dad put me on the top bunk bed, and said, "When I say 'jump,' you jump to me. (Yes, the lights were on.) But I was afraid of falling, so I told dad I didn't want to jump. Dad promised me that there was absolutely no way I could fall; because even if I jumped awkwardly or inadvertently fell off the bed, he would still catch me.

I don't know if you understand the fear of falling, but I was almost scared to death! I was emotionally paralyzed. But dad said very gently, "Eugene, if you can't trust me, how will you ever learn to trust God?" You see, the proof or result of trust is obedience.

Well that made sense -- even to a 5-year-old.

So I suddenly leapt off the bed and hit dad in the chest with my 35 pounds and nearly knocked him over. Dad caught his balance and asked, "Why didn't you warn me you were going to jump?" I responded, "You said you would catch me." Dad chuckled, hugged me, and said, "Good job."

Dad taught me about trust. Dad taught me a lot about life.

Did I fully trust dad, or did I partially trust him? If we consider my fear, we might say I partly trusted him. But if we consider my obedience, we say I absolutely trusted him. Obedience verifies trust.

What was it dad said? "Eugene, if you can't trust me, how will you ever learn to trust God?"

As I grew older, I learned to trust God with my entire life.

How would my faith in God have been affected if dad dropped me? That's hard to say because dad caught me. However, Dad most likely would have picked me up, apologized profusely to mom (who was watching), and tenderly talked to me about what went wrong. And because of that, I think I would still have learned to trust God.

I've experienced many situations since I left my parents' home where I could have forfeited my faith and lost trust in God. But I am reminded of John 6:65-68. Many of Jesus' disciples left Jesus, and Jesus asked if the twelve would also leave. "Peter responded, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."

Job was one of the richest men in the world, and he lost everything. He lost his children, livestock, respect and admiration of friends and business associates, and was accused of being a terrible sinner.

But in spite of all of that, Job never lost his faith in God. He wanted to talk to God face-to-face and defend himself, but he never lost his faith. Job 13:15a says, "Though he [God] slay me, yet will I trust in him." In chapter 19 verse 25, Job proclaims, "I know that my Redeemer lives, and he will eventually come to the earth." And God, in the form of Jesus of Nazareth, did come to earth to redeem us.

Human mistakes and misfortunes should not deter us from trusting God. Jesus said if we love him, we will obey him. And obedience is a manifestation of trust.

So, do you trust God?

-- Gene Linzey is a speaker, author, mentor and president of the Siloam Springs Writers Guild. Send comments and questions to [email protected]. The opinions expressed are those of the author.