Trust in God with all your heart...
Proverbs 3:5-6
The first thing that I want to bring out in this proverb is the importance of trust. Clay has no chance of being molded into a masterpiece on its own, unless it were willing to exercise trust and sit still while the master forms it.
In order for us to take full advantage of our relationship with God, we must completely turn our entire life over to Him. The writer here specifically exhorts his son by saying, “…all your heart…” In other words, give God access to every area of your life. Trust him in all things. Trust is like the teeth on the gears of life, that keep it connected, interacting with one another, and moving in a forward motion. When the teeth of trust break down at any level...the wheels just spin in place...life looses its traction and cannot move forward.
He emphasizes the specifics of trust by saying, “…and lean not to your own…” This is truly where the degeneration of a man’s life begins. Paul gave this analogy of Israel’s spiritual condition during his time by saying, “For they (The Nation of Israel) being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God.” When man isolates himself through his pride, self-reliance and defiance of truth, he is leaning on a very weak foundation that cannot support the needs of mankind; much less his redemption. He inevitably will fall. Jesus once said, “He that hears my words, but will not obey them, is like a man who without a foundation built a house; against which a great storm arose and a stream did beat vehemently against it, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.”
My worst mistakes were decisions that were never truly submitted to God’s review. I never gave him an opportunity to critique my thought patterns concerning those decisions. Thus the writer says, “…in all thy ways acknowledge him…” If we are not submitting our thoughts to God, we are presumptuously acting strictly upon human impulse, and not on the direction of the spirit of God. When in reality, we should stop and say to ourselves, “I need to pray about this first.” We live in a generation that is constantly giving opinions about everything from pop music to sports, from federal court trial outcomes to the private lives of celebrities, and from politics to human health. However, with all of this spontaneous talk and presumptuous opinion, I often wonder can anyone find truth in the middle of all that confusion. People would live much more healthy and peaceful lives if they would simply listen to Solomon’s inspired words, “…acknowledge him…”
With every single action there is always a direct response or reaction. This is the law of physics that works in all realms of life, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual. The writer gives us the good results of our trusting God with our lives. He says, “…and he will direct your life.” There is an old story that I love to tell that I think really relates well to this point.
There once was a young boy casually walking along the bank of the great Mississippi river with a fishing pole flung across his shoulder. He suddenly came upon an old gentlemen sitting on the bank fishing with his pole. The young boy asked, “Sir, may I fish along side you a while. The old gentleman smiled and said, “Sure son, take a seat.” A few minutes went by and suddenly the Mississippi Queen paddle boat started to come around the bend. The boy dropped his pole and started jumping up and down and waving his arms in the air saying, “Over here, Over here!” The old man just chuckled to himself and said, “Son, do you really think that big steam boat is going to pull over just for you?” The boy just kept shouting and waving his arms in the air. Suddenly, to the amazement of the gentleman the steam boat began to slowly turn to shore. As it came to the bank and dropped down the walkway, the boy grabbed his pole and walked on board. The gentleman in astonishment hollered up to the boy and said, “Son, how did you get that boat to pull over for you so easily?” The boy grinned and peered over the edge of the railing and said, “Sir, it’s simple. My Dad is the captain of this here boat.” I don’t know about you, but when I need the ship of my life to take a turn, I want my heavenly Father to be at the helm.
With what areas of your life do you have trust issues? Do you at times feel isolated? How much do you trust in God? Are the gears of that relationship connected...or are the teeth worn down? Who do you feel is the captain of the ship of your life?