Trust

 Trust is sometimes a difficult feeling to develop. It is a feeling and it is one that begins with something from each person’s past and grows in some direction, either greater or lesser depending on words and actions experienced by each person. Some people have an approach of trusting anyone until they do something or say something to break that feeling of trust. Others, usually due to past broken events of trust, are very cautious to allow trust to develop. A large part of developing trust is the perceived risk in some way to a person’s safety and security. When two individuals meet or come in contact, each needs to develop a sense of acceptance and expectation of the other. This is sometimes most clearly visualized in children. The ultimate example is found in Jesus. What kind of trust must He have had when, "Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil," Matt. 4:1 (ESV). There is a story about a man and his dog. Through time spent together, the dog trusted his master completely. In this story, the man was in a room in which the dog had never entered. When the door was opened, the dog sprang without hesitation to his master. The presence of his master overpowered any unforeseen dangers. Another story is told about a Father attempting to get his daughter to jump into his arms while he was standing in a swimming pool. While the little girl trusted her dad, his surroundings terrified her; she was afraid of something damaging her. Undoubtedly, she had been in bathtubs before, but this water source seemed much larger and more dangerous. She had done new things her Dad had asked her to do before, but this was different somehow. Her feelings of self-preservation overpowered the trust she felt for her dad. Although she had water rings on her arms, she needed coaxing and encouragement to take the step toward trusting her dad and setting aside her sense of self-preservation. When she set them aside an trusted her Dad, everything turned out fine and she enjoyed playing the water with him. Sometimes, our trust overpowers our our sense of self preservation. These are two examples of entities depending on trust. Trust allows us to move past unknowns and insecurities into better relationships with God and the Holy Spirit. It is true, there are many things about God, the Holy Spirit we are not capable of understanding. But is we read scripture and learn to trust Him, we should not be afraid to step forward when we understand He requests it. Whether we think of the Father, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit as one greater than us, LORD, in Proverbs 3:5 applies, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding". (NLT)