Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding;
in all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
Proverbs 3:5 – 6 (21KJV)
I sat in my office frustrated and praying … again. Another day, month, year had gone by and my husband’s health only seemed to worsen when by all accounts it should have been getting better. I had done everything I knew to do and nothing and no one could help. I could not fix it. I was exhausted. I was overwhelmed. I was confused. I spent many moments in tears and contemplating what else to do. But I was so burned out, all I could do was give up. Finally, I could hear the Lord over my stubborn will and self-reliance say, “You need to seek counsel and not hide this anymore.” I breathed deeply knowing that my God was right. He is always right. I allowed my heart to trust God to lead me to new people, new answers, and new actions. And each day, I had a laundry list of questions that I took to Him in prayer. Instead of hearing His endorsement of my solutions, all I could hear Him clearly say was, “Trust Me.” As this journey of learning continues for me today, God continues to encourage me by saying, “Trust Me."
It was on one particularly difficult day that I scrolled through YouTube and a song I had never heard before popped up on my playlist. Trust in God performed by Elevation Worship (featuring Chris Brown). Holy Spirit prompted me, “Listen.”
TRUST IN GOD
Blessed assurance
Jesus is mine
He's been my fourth man in the fire time after time
Born of His Spirit
Washed in His blood
And what He did for me on Calvary is more than enough
I trust in God
My Savior
The One who will never fail
He will never fail
Perfect submission
All is at rest
I know the Author of Tomorrow has ordered my steps
So, this is my story
And this is my song
I'm praising my risen King and Savior all the day long
I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered
I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered
I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered
That's why I trust Him, that's why I trust Him1
As I listened and studied the song, tears welled in my eyes as Chris crooned about my current condition. “Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord.” I just kept repeating the words. I was moved by how the writers had reached back to include the lyrics of one of my favorite hymns, Blessed Assurance by Fanny Crosby. Blind at the age of 6 years old due to illness, Fanny wrote many songs, her first at age 8. She wrote;
O what a happy soul am I!
Although I cannot see,
I am resolved that in this world
Contented I will be;2
As I continued to listen and study Elevation Worship's performance, my heart overflowed and I raised my hands as the lyric repeated in the bridge, “I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered … that’s why I trust in God.” So simple. So matter of fact. This phrase beautifully describes how prayer and quiet surrender to God are the keys to learning to trust and experience His answers. Holy Spirit said, “You will teach the Church and worship with this song.”
I blurted out loud “Yes, LORD!”, as I sat alone in my office, hands raised and tears falling.
The song lyric brought to mind Proverbs 3:5-6, one of my life verses. Jeffery Curtis Poor, a pastor and blogger, takes biblical texts and breaks the meaning of these verses for us. He writes:
It’s important to start with an understanding of what the book of Proverbs is …This book centers around gaining wisdom and living wisely.
Jeffery goes on to write;
The word “trust” here implies both the decision to trust God but also a commitment to create a habit of trusting. When you first follow Christ you are making a decision to trust God. This isn’t just a choice in our head, but actions in our life. We must actively choose to trust God daily.
The word “heart” describes the extent to which we are to trust in God. This word indicates the center of our being. In other words, we are to trust God with everything we are and everything we have. No exceptions.
Trusting in the Lord with all your heart means that you have placed your hope in Christ alone. Nothing else. No one else.
Jeffery continues;
The concept of “trusting” and “leaning” have similar meanings, but differ. To trust means to put yourself fully at the mercy of another. To lean is not simply reclining against, but relying on something for support to stay upright.
In Proverbs 3:6 Solomon chooses the word “submit” or “acknowledge” rather than trust. This word means to be in fellowship with God and not just a casual relationship. This means that we obey God’s direction and rules for our life. …what Proverbs 3:5-6 is communicating is that what appears to be right in the moment, isn’t always the case. And what appears to be doom and gloom in the moment can be used for good if we trust God. Our paths might not appear straight in our finite view of things. But for those who trust in the Lord, he is guiding us and one day we will see the fullness of what he has done.3
In the subsequent weeks, I introduced Bay Life Church to Trust in God. It was, as Pastor Tom likes to call songs that really connect with the heart of people and engage us to worship God, “a banger.” Now, our youth and young adults also worship with this song. Every time we sing it, I hear another testimony of how God is drawing someone to trust Him.
As I look back and remember hearing God say, “Trust Me.” I can see how He has worked in my life. The truth is, He has answered prayers that I did not know how to pray anymore, including restoring my husband’s health. So, if you see me on the other side of any terrible thing and ask me how I got through it, the answer will only be, “I sought the Lord and He heard and He answered! That’s why I trust in God!”
FOOTNOTES
1Elevation Music Written by Christopher Joel Brown, Steven Furtick, Brandon Lake, and Mitch Wong, I Trust in God, 2023
2Fanny Crosby, Blessed Assurance, 1820
3Jeffery Curtis Poor, Rethink Blog: The Powerful Meaning of Proverbs 3:5-6 (And 5 Ways You Can Trust In God), 2018
