I remember the time when I took the first step to trusting God. I was working in one of the coastal villages in the Philippines many years ago and I remember going to the beach after work and noticing the beautiful sunset over a very calm sea. That spectacular view so touched my heart that I stopped for a while and said to myself, "Babes, surely God alone can create such an amazing scene. If He can do that, certainly HE can easily take good care of you."
I got to thinking afterwards about my relationships -- with my parents, my best friend and other significant people in my life, why I trust them and how I learned to trust them. It all boiled down to the fact that I KNOW them, I know their character and that is why I trust them. You see, trusting someone is closely related to knowing someone.
So to TRUST GOD, one has to KNOW GOD. How? Spend time with Him. That is how you got to know the people you trust, right? Find time to know God. Set up a regular time for prayer and reading the Bible and other spiritual books which teach you about Him. And remember what He has done for you in the past. I'm sure you had survived personal crisis, went through and resolved a lot of problems not because of your own efforts alone but more so by the grace and love of God.
Note that your trust in God should be based on His character and love and not on specific outcomes you see and experience. There will be times in your life when trusting God may be difficult -- when you lose your job, when someone you love passed away, when the answer to your prayer is not what you expected etc.. But it doesn't mean that God is not trustworthy. Look at these times as times when you need Him the most so hold on to God and know that He is with you and that He will see you through rough and difficult times. You will come out from this darkness into the light with your faith strengthened and with an even greater trust in your Creator.
I am not a Bible expert and I am certainly not one of those people who can recite verses from the Bible effortlessly. I must confess I know only 13 verses in the Bible by heart but believing the truth contained in these verses, works for me when it comes to completely trusting God. These verses are from:
Matthew 6:25-34
25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about
your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.
Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?
26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns,
and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than
they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how
the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that
not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is
how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is
thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or
'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your
heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his
righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do
not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has
enough trouble of its own.
Matthew 10:29-31
29Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?
Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.
30And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31So don't be afraid;
you are worth more than many sparrows.
So, there is really no need for stress and worry. God is in charge of our lives!
1 comment:
I actually was looking to post a comment concerning the year's first entry (I was advised of it on January 3), however, I cannot find it presently. That was a beautiful piece. I recollect a central point pertained to the matter of seeking.
I found a great deal of enrichment through learning a long time ago that the Patriarch Joseph of the Old Testament is a prototype of Saint Joseph. He is also considered to be something of a Christ-like archetype, so to speak. Consider how the two Great Josephs had to persevere against tremendous adversity. As spiritual wrtiers have noted, one of the key correlations between these two sublime souls is that the Patriarch Joseph was given
the responsibility of distributing bread to the people. The Foster Father of Jesus was given the responsibility of caring for The Bread of Life even prior to His Incarnation in Bethlehem, a word which means "House of Bread".
In brief, we are wise to seek Jesus Christ under the patronage of Saint Joseph. He will lead us to the Eucharist, the Heart of Our Church. Through seeking for and finding Jesus, all true and everlasting riches Providence desires we receive shall in turn be granted. Just as Saint Joseph had to endure much rejection when seeking a suitable place for Mary to give birth, and the Patriarch Joseph had to endure betrayal at the hands of his own brothers, being sold into slavery, and was thrown into prison due to false accusation, so we may have to pass through many trials in order to fulfill God's will. Let us always be mindful that the Patriarch was eventually raised to be the vizer of Pharoah and lived to achieve heart rending reconciliation with his brothers, and that Saint Joseph reigns as The Patriarch of The Universal Church. Our faithful pursuit of The Lord will indeed be rewarded!
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