Trust

We all know that one of the greatest assets we can have in life is knowledge and belief in our inner strength. For a Christian, that strength comes from trust in the power and the presence of the Almighty. Trust is not built by prayers answered, but by silence to prayers…a seeming neglect of God. The gospels give adequate examples of such neglect: consider the raging storm on the sea when the Lord slept in the boat until, in terror, the disciples cry out, “Lord, save us.” And His reply was, “Why were you afraid?” Their ship was being tossed and thrown about in the waves, about to sink. But they had forgotten the most important thing: that they had Jesus there among them. Whatever happened, he would be there.

I’m always reminded of a tough time in my life, when I prayed psalm 23 and wondered, if the Lord is my shepherd, and I should not want, why do I want? Was Jesus really not my true love? Was it inappropriate to have needs? What was wrong with me? I had forgotten to continue reading the psalm, to the words, “even though I walk in the dark valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me with your rod and your staff that give me courage.” If I had found that line in my heart, I would have been comforted with the knowledge that it is not so much prayers answered, or light received, or miracles happening that show the power, love, and care of God for us, for me. It is darkness endured, trial undergone, pain received. We can manage these things because God is with us. His presence is so deep within us that we can forget it is there. In hindsight, perhaps we will see how the Hand of God led us on. In the moment, we need trust to know that however dark that valley is, we should not fear. We should reach out in the dark, knowing that the unseen hand of God is already reaching out to sustain us in our struggle. Once we become convinced of that, we are terrible indeed. For then, nothing will separate us from the Love of Christ, and our steps will be firm along the way, knowing that we do not travel alone. This is our source of inner strength, a source not dependant upon externals that sift and change with time. But a source that guides us even in our darkest hour.