Trust and Faith · Identity in Christ · Trials and Growth · Biblical Reflections
Trust? You trust, he trusts… and me?
3 min read, approximately
“But the Lord raised a great wind upon the sea, and such a great storm arose that it seemed the ship would break apart. The sailors were afraid, and each cried out to his god. They threw the equipment aboard the ship into the sea to lighten it. Jonah, however, had gone down into the depths of the ship and lain down to sleep.” (Jonah 1:4-5a)
A comparison
Today, while reading passages from the Word, I reached the book of Jonah, and the following message stood out to me
“But the Lord raised a great wind upon the sea, and such a great storm arose that it seemed the ship would break apart. The sailors were afraid, and each cried out to his god. They threw the equipment aboard the ship into the sea to lighten it. Jonah, however, had gone down into the depths of the ship and lain down to sleep.” (Jonah 1:4-5a)
For some particular reason, I did not want to move on to another passage, so I decided to meditate on it again and again. As I immersed myself more deeply in it, a comparison came to mind:
- A boat, representing everything that makes us feel secure
- Sailors, referring to every skill, course of study, experience, and anything else that leads us to believe that all this knowledge is more than enough to tell ourselves: ‘We are in control!’
- A terrible storm, representing every invitation from God, through a process, to reconsider, understand, and place our dependence and trust in him
‘I believe in God’
Looking a little deeper, I realized that most of us almost automatically say we believe in God. Yet as soon as we face a difficult circumstance, we tremble with fear and cry out to our ‘gods’:
- That person who always lends us money
- That relative who has connections
- The one who studied and might be able to lend a hand
- (Fill in your gods here)
But what about trust in God?
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)
Those very incidents, circumstances, and ups and downs serve to show us how much we trust our Father. That is the moment when we remember, know, and are absolutely convinced that Dad is going to do something. It is our duty to rest in him, like a good child in their father’s arms. If we know we have an eternal, good, and wonderful Father who is a ready help, why should we have ‘gods’?
“My brothers and sisters, count it all joy when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. Let patience complete its work, so that you may be perfect and whole, lacking nothing.” (James 1:2-4)
My friend reading this
“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and troubled within me? Hope in God, for I will yet praise him for the saving help of his presence.” (Psalms 42:5)
May God continue to bless you
and may you continue to have an excellent day in Christ Jesus!
I invite you to stop by the Songbook