Proverbs 3:5-8
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He will make your paths straight.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD and shun evil.
8 This will bring health to your body
and nourishment to your bones. (NIV 84)
It all started with Proverbs 3:4-8 which led me to the topic of trust and its effect on my life and faith. This is a bit long, so bear with me.
Trust is something I have struggled with probably my entire life. Who is trustworthy? I grew up trusting the wrong person and getting incredibly hurt. I also grew up being used, abused, and manipulated, especially by the people closest to me. Where did my trouble with trust start? At home with my birth mother, Candace, and my sister who taught me not to trust.
I have struggled with trusting God. It is hard to admit and even harder to deny. As my faith has grown, my trust has grown. It still needs work. Here on earth, everything needs work. I have learned to trust God to be by my side and give me strength. I know that doesn’t mean the future is going to be smooth sailing. I know I will face troubles in the future. Some people would call me a pessimist, but I consider myself a realist. Jesus told his disciples that they would have trouble in the world in John 16:33
I have told you these things, so that in Me you
may have peace. In this world you will have trouble.
But take heart! I have overcome the world.
(John 16:33) (NIV ’84)
But Jesus also promised relief in our times of trouble. He states this in Matthew 11:28-30.
28 Come to Me, all you who are weary and
burdened and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke
upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and
humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
(Matthew 11:28-30)
In John, Jesus is very clearly stating that we will have trouble in the world. The life of a Christian is not all Easter Bunnies and Santa Claus (not that those are necessarily bad things). So, how can Jesus offer us rest as he states in Matthew?
The answer that came to me (Than you, LORD) surprised me because it was so simple: We are dealing with two different realms. One is the world. The world likes to be a bully and place heavy yokes on us. In the other realm, Jesus exists to counter that world and give a different sort of yoke.
Jesus says, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened.” That is all of us. The world gives us burdens that make us weary. Then Jesus says, “I will give you rest.” Jesus wants us to give Him our burdens and let Him carry them. Our troubles may still be there, but our Savior is walking beside us and carrying the weight. Jesus says we, “will find rest for your souls,” and that His yoke “is easy” and His burden “is light”. I think that “rest for our souls” is critical. In our crazy lives, we often don’t take the time to give our souls rest. We think about our bodies, but not our souls. How do we rest our souls? Quiet time with God – even just reading a psalm.
Jesus wants us to exchange the world’s yoke for His yoke. In the midst of all the chaos and pain, Jesus offers us His love and peace. When we are caught in a storm, all we need to do is to fix our eyes on Jesus and He will get us through.