Genuine Faith, Part III

Trust. That is something that can be very hard to do. Do I trust the auto shop to repair my car correctly AND give me a fair price? Do I trust my children to carry through on the responsibilities I have given them? Do I trust the leaders of the country to uphold our freedoms and liberties as granted to us in the constitution? There are many, many aspects of our lives that require us to trust. Do you trust? I know oftentimes I fall short in that area of my life. I have a tendency to get wrapped up in my fears and expect the worst from everything. Trust is a virtue that we all need to grow in our lives.

Trust begins and ends in a relationship with Christ. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus compels us to trust: "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me" (Matt 16:24). The operative phrase here is "follow me." Jesus doesn't tell us where we are going. He doesn't map out our journey for us. All He says is "follow me." Not knowing where we're going or what we're doing on this adventure requires trust. It requires us to completely let go of EVERYTHING!!!

Nearly two years ago I lost my job. I was working as a financial advisor for a major national firm when the rug was pulled out from underneath me. I went home that evening devastated and fearful. I was (and still am) the sole source of income for my family. I had a wife and 4 children that trusted me to provide for them. I feared for my future. That night I got down on my knees and prayed. I prayed that God would provide me with a new source of income...and quickly!! More importantly, I prayed that I would be able to trust God in my life. And for the first time in my life I was truly able to let it all go. I put my trust in the Lord like I have never done before.

Eventually God provided me with a job, although not on my timeline. It took nearly 7 months and we exhausted all of our savings. One more month of unemployment and we would have to decide which bills got paid and which ones wouldn't. The whole experience was a lesson in trust. We need follow God without knowing where He is taking us. God brought me to youth ministry, something I never thought I would do, but something which I absolutely love. God knows better than me. He knows better than you! We need to let Him take control of our lives. We need to trust Him.

Genuine faith is an important part of our adventure to salvation. We all need to deny ourselves. We need to be willing to endure suffering and sacrifice with the heart of Christ. We need to trust the Lord with everything in our lives. Most importantly, we need to pray. We need to pray through it all. Pray constantly. I'm not there yet, but someday I hope to have genuine faith. How about you?