Nahum 1:7

The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him

God is a place of shelter and rest for those who trust in Him. His love is our city of refuge, it is our place of survival because God cares. Sometimes we feel all alone in the time of trouble like a ship tossed by the waves and forgotten in the storm. Yet as we lean into God through trust we discover that not only does He care and love us but that He is our place of safety

But notice that He cares for those who trust in Him and to trust Him you must know Him. In Matthew 7:21-23 Jesus said that knowing God is foundational and of the upmost importance:

21 “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. 22 On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ 23 But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’

Jesus says that even though you worked miracles, if you do not “know” God, you will be sent away on the day of judgment.  To trust him you must know him, you need a relationship with him. Calling on God through praying when you need something or for your food when it’s time to eat is not knowing Him. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 stays that we should “pray without ceasing.” This doesn’t mean that we should always have our hands folded, head bowed, and eyes shut. It implies a relationship of continual contact and fellowship between you and God. It’s not just praying but spending time with God, Abraham walked with God and talked with God. Spending time with someone is the greatest and simplest way to get to know them. But that requires reading and listening to God’s Word. As we get to know God, trusting Him  becomes easier.

So do you trust God? Intellectually many of us do but practically we are still holding back. Trust is best seen in our response to God, whether we obey Him or not. If you trust him, you will be faithful to obey, to do his will, regardless of what makes sense humanly. Trusting God is not a logic exercise but a step of faith toward the one who is faithful. When I think of obedience and doing the Fathers will Matthew 25:21 always comes to mind: “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together! Notice that it didn’t say “good and honest, or smart, or anointed, or punctual.” It says “faithful.” Faithfulness means doing it even if we don’t know why, or understand why.

We have all heard sermons on the Will of God, and we know that God desires the best for his children, yet how we get the “best” is what seems to create the greatest confusion. One of our biggest challenges is being faithful to do God’s will even though we don’t understand why, and in spite of our own logic. In our last devotional Proverbs 3:5-6 we were reminded that we should not “Lean on our own understanding.” This seems to be a hard thing to do because we sometimes think we know what should happen or what He should do. In Numbers 13:26-33 and 14:8-12, even though there were giants in the land, Caleb trusted God to do what He said, although the other Israelites looked at the circumstances and leaned on common sense. In verse 10 we see that people will get mad! “Be reasonable.” “Use some common sense.” But we need to remember that Numbers 14:23-24 tells us what happens to those who believe and those who do not, refuge or ruin!

The bible is filled with people who did not want to trust God, in 2 Kings 5:9-14 Elisha told Naaman to cleanse his disease by washing in the Jordan River 7 times. This made Naaman angry because he had a different way in mind, his own logical understanding told him it should be done the way he thought it should. Elisha’s way sounded foolish to him, but when Naaman finally did what he was supposed to he found that it worked. Abraham in Genesis 15-17 is promised a son, and does it his own way instead of trusting God’s way. Sometimes we don’t understand what God is doing but will we trust Him? In Genesis 22 God tells Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac on the altar, talk about not understanding God’s Will, yet this time Abraham obeys because he trusts God. The more you know Him the more we should trust Him.

We all want to experience the refuge in times of trouble but many of us are living in rebellion by refusing to trust. We want the blessing of His care and protection and we also want to have it our own way. Will you step into His refuge as you trust Him with your circumstances and your life?

Proverbs 3:5-6

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. 6 Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Many people want to know God’s Will for their life and most of the time the focus is on “God tell me so I can go do it”. What if the focus became God being the guide and leading us as we follow Him? But that would require trust and trust is a real problem in our society. Proverbs 3:5-6 are classic bible verses promising the Christian that God does guide, they start with us trusting in the Lord with all our heart, this means that we are willing to:

• Get on Board

Before you can go sailing you have to get on board the boat, and that requires that you trust in both the boat and the captain. Getting on board is an act of faith and if you want to find God’s will you first have to put your trust in Him. In your heart you have to answer the question, “Is God trustworthy?” and “Am I willing to let God guide my life?”

In the Old Testament we have many examples of people of faith. Noah was a man of faith, and God told Noah to build a huge boat large enough to hold a zoo full of animals. Noah got on board with God’s plan because he trusted God. He began building the boat on dry land and he was obedient to God even though there was no large body of water around. By faith Noah was preparing for a flood, not because it looked like one was coming but because He believed God when he said one was. Noah and his family were laughed at by all in the community, at first trusting and following God seemed silly, but Noah trusted and continued to build by faith. To get on board requires trusting God with all of our heart, even when His plan doesn’t make sense. Many times we make halfhearted attempts to follow God simply because we do not fully trust Him. Jonah didn’t like God’s plan for His life so he tried to jump ship and head in a different direction. What ship are you on?

• Lean on Him

The natural out flow of trusting in God is leaning on Him. Often we will say we are trusting God but the practical reality is that we are still leaning on our own ability. In the sailing analogy this is setting the sail, trusting God is getting on board with His plan, but once we are on board we have to lean into His Will. Setting the sail takes it to the next level, it is acknowledging the Lord and surrendering to His will, this is putting our faith into action. There are some people who argue with God. “When God made me He made a big mistake!” “My life has no meaning.” There are others who get angry with God. They refuse to set the sail so they drift, going nowhere in life. Without God in your life your life has no ultimate purpose. You can only know God’s plan by accepting Him as Your guide and acknowledging Him as the Captain and Master of your life. A sailboat rudder is useless while the sails are down because without the wind filling the sails there is now power to direct our life and we are not really heading anywhere.  God provides the wind to fill the sails and give us momentum and direction in life.

Sometimes God wants to change our course and when the wind changes we need to be ready to come bout. Sometimes we can feel His winds of change ahead of time but often they seem to catch us unaware but we are not unprepared because His wind always provides the needed forward momentum so the rudder can provide the change of course. But you can’t go any direction until the wind fills the sails. There are some people who refuse to alter their course even when they know that God is making it clear that it’s time to go in a new direction. You can’t afford to hang onto some good thing you have now, and run the risk of missing God’s best. Sometimes out on the sea of life the fog rolls in and we get confused, there are all sorts of voices shouting orders into the night, telling us what to do, how to adjust our lives. Out of the darkness, one voice signals something quite opposite to the rest, something almost absurd. Will we listen and allow God to fill the sail of our life?

• Follow His lead

He will make your paths straight, he will direct your steps. God gives you the privilege of making choices, and He gives you the choice to follow His will. When it comes to listening to the captain the wheel that controls the direction of your life is in your hands. Will you take hold of the wheel that controls the rudder and steer your life following God as your guide? Think back to five years ago, would you have dreamed five years ago that you would be doing now what you are doing today? Would you have anticipated world events or economic changes that are happening now? God knew, it was not a surprise to Him. Are you fearful about your future? Is it time to give your future to God? Will you follow His lead living one day at a time, completely surrendered to His will? Here is the key, don’t lean on your understanding, trust God, and acknowledge that He is the One who is working in your life. Don’t give God half-hearted trust, give Him whole-hearted trust, it’s time to get on board.