Trusting God in the midst of the craziness of our world is difficult and can often be draining and stressful. Maybe it seems like trusting God is impossible but we can and when we do we live life fuller and in more peace and rest.
One of the first times I ever drove through Atlanta traffic by myself I remember being shocked and anxious at how crazy the traffic was. There were hundreds of cars all around me and some were moving much more aggressively than others and some moving as if they had no idea where they were going. People were honking, cutting in front of me, probably cussing at me in their car. It was complete madness. And If you know anything about Atlanta traffic you know that it’s crazy and not a lot of fun.
Often times life is much like this. There is a craziness to the world we live in. Most circumstances in life if not all of them are out of our control. And for many of us the idea of not having control or being able to control our days drives us crazy.
The question that we have to ask ourselves is not if craziness will come but how will we respond when it does? What if our perspective was that trusting God is good for us? That trusting Him is something that allows us to grow in greater depth in our faith and draws us closer to God. For many of us the concept of having full trust and surrender is difficult. It requires us to let go and place hope not in ourselves but in a power greater than us.
One of the stories that is often referenced in trusting God is found in the Gospels. In Mark 4:35-41 it reads:
Jesus Calms the Storm
35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
This is often us
One of my favorite lines in this part of Mark is the question that the disciples ask Jesus. “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” The disciples ask this question as we would in the midst of insanity. “God do you not care what I have going on?” What is interesting about the question that the disciples ask is that it infers that Jesus was not concerned with the well being of those on the boat.
How often in the midst of whatever you have going on become so focused on the issue going on that you could not be reminded that God still has a care for you and your well being? What I believe about God is that His intentions are always good but that it does not always mean that it will be the most enjoyable for us. What I do know is that God’s first priority is to draw His people closer in to Him. The process that He uses to do that is His choice.
How shall we respond?
One of my favorite books growing up was The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. A famous line in this book comes from a conversation from a talking Beaver and two girls Lucy and Susan. This conversation is in regards to Aslan the Great Lion:
Aslan is a lion- the Lion, the great Lion.
Ooh’ said Susan. ‘I’d thought he was a man. Is he quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion…’
Safe?’ said Mr Beaver … Who said anything about safe? Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.
Maybe safety is something that we prefer. Much like Susan our concern is safety. And in our minds safety and good do not often correlate. Yet Mr. Beaver in this conversation states: Of course Aslan isn’t safe but he is good.
Safety is not what we will find in Trust
A life of trusting God may not be the safest. It may not be the easiest. Even so it is also good for us. It is good for us in every aspect of our life. Likewise, it calls us to a surrendering of ourselves and a trusting that even when we are uncomfortable and uneasy there is a knowing that our God is good. Maybe our lives don’t make sense. Maybe it is hard to know where life is taking us. Life is crazy and often terrifying. What you should know though is that you will not find safety in trust.
The journey of following God with trust is one that often requires us to be in the midst of the storm and trust we do not have to worry or fear but know that this life may not feel safe but it is good. When we do this we can worship God in a way we may never have before. Worshiping Him with full reliance on Him and lesser reliance on self.
This life will always be crazy and susceptible to change and chaos. Even so we have a God that can be trusted. He may not be safe but He is Good. He is the King.
I needed this. Thank you for this.
Good! Glad it helped