Trust & Obey

August 4, 2011

This past Sunday, our pastor finished up a message series titled "In God we Trust"; Sunday's message was "Trust and Obey". Ironically enough, this is something that I've been "preaching" to my tweenager for several months now. Well, sort of.

I remember being a kid. I remember thinking that my mom was so old fashioned and such a prude! I remember thinking that she did not have a clue about life in the "current" decade! I made a vow to not be like her when I had kids of my own.

Fast forward to present day.

Okay. So, maybe I can occasionally be prude-ish. But, it's not in vain. I've grown a set of morals and learned to listen to the voice of my conscience Heavenly Father. I can also see that so many of the things I did as a teen were not the smartest things one should do. I trusted people that had not earned it. I made decisions based on what felt good at the time. And I never, ever considered that there was a world that was bigger than me. Yes. I made it out okay. But only by the grace of God!

Now, I am trying my best to guide my kids. I want the very best for them; more than they want for themselves probably. The thing is, they don't trust that I have any clue as to what I am talking about where they're concerned. They don't see the bigger picture. They don't get the why's and why not's of it all. I cannot tell you how many times I have sat on their bed and asked, "Do you know that I love you? Have I ever done anything to hurt you? Do you believe that I will protect you? Do you believe that I want only the best for you?" They acknowledge that I only want the best for them. Then I say, "Then you're just going to have to TRUST me! You only know what your 12 years worth of experience has taught you. I've got 38 years of experience. Even thought it may be hard to believe, I know more than you do. I have the ability to see the bigger picture. I have wisdom and maturity on my side. You will have it, too, one day. But, you've got to earn it." I beg for their trust. I plead for it. I promise that if they give it to me, it will benefit them! (Okay, so it will make my life a whole lot easier and less painful, too.)

Often, in my parenting struggles, things are revealed to me about my relationship with God. Just like with my kids, if I trust Him and His Word, then the direct result of that is obedience. It's just that simple. So I either do or don't. But, I cannot pick and choose which areas I can trust Him in. I've got to realize that He has my best interest at heart. His desires for me far exceed anything I could dream for myself. He is Wisdom. He is Knowledge. So, even when I think that He's taking me somewhere I don't want to go, or giving me something I don't want to carry, I must trust Him. The experience will be used "for good and not evil, to give me a future and a hope". (Jeremiah 29:11)

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding." Proverbs 3:5