Recently, I watched a reel that left me with a quote in mind. The quote said, “teach me how to trust you, Lord, even in the silence.”
You see, it’s easy to trust the Lord when we have an idea of where He is leading us. However, the harsh reality of life is that most of the time we usually are unsure about where God is taking us. Unlike humans, God usually holds back on the details until we learn to trust and believe in Him.
In fact, in Isaiah 55: 8-9, the word of God reassures us that God’s ways are indeed different from our (human) ways.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Isaiah 55: 8-9
In this verse, God points us towards His ‘otherness’
The corruptibility and untrustworthiness of the character of human beings does not apply to God. Put simply, God is trustworthy and incorruptible. This truth- this otherness- this distinction of character that is so pure and holy and incapable of deceit and maliciousness is who God is and therefore what He wants us to trust in.
AND trust- God expects- EVEN AND ESPECIALLY IN THE DARKNESS.
In Psalms 23, the Psalmist says, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” And then just a few verses afterwards, he adds, “…Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”
The Psalmist here is a human being who takes on the metaphorical character of a sheep that trusts in the guidance, provision, care, protection, and comfort of its shepherd. This sheep trusts its shepherd EVEN in the visual and literal uncertainty that comes with walking through the valley of the shadow of death.
The reality is that uncertainty can be crippling. In actuality, the place of uncertainty is the place where doubt, fear and anxiety have high potential of creeping in. However, it is the same place where trust in God can and should be most prominent.
AND the big question is “WHY?’
WHY SHOULD WE TRUST IN GOD DURING THE MOST UNCERTAIN OF TIMES?
The answer is because our human limitations do not apply to God. This means that what is uncertain or unclear to us as human beings is not uncertain to God. THAT is His otherness.
God has the ability to see things that we cannot. Just because the future is uncertain to us, does not mean that it is uncertain to God.
But human beings loathe uncertainty. In fact, we are most comfortable in the spaces where we can predict the turnout of events accurately. And because of this, we become frustrated when God asks us to trust Him before He reveals the details of our lives.
So, the other question is ‘WHY?”
WHY DOES GOD EXPECT US TO TRUST IN HIM EVEN IN UNCERTAINTY?
It’s because trust is an avenue and key ingredient for fostering good relationships. It is impossible to have a good relationship with anyone or anything without trust. In other words, to have a good relationship you need trust.
AND good relationships are developed through observation, internalization, love and acceptance.
We feel most KNOWN when we feel understood. God desires to be understood as one who cannot lie- and therefore can be trusted.
Numbers 23:19 reminds us that, “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” (KJV)
The NIV translation makes it even more obvious by saying, “God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?”
GOD is not a liar. He can be trusted and wants to be trusted.
The underlying message in this expectation of trust is that not only does God desire a good relationship with us, but He also desires for us to know Him and to trust in His character.
Knowing this, allows us to go confidently to Him in prayer and ask, “teach me how to trust you, Lord, even in the silence.”