Faith that Trusts

Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your heart before Him; 
God is a refuge for us~ Psalm 62:8 NKV

 Yesterday, as I was rereading the first few chapters of the book of Luke, I was reminded of a nerve-wracking stage in my son’s life. We called it his mountaineering phase. From the time Alex could crawl, he climbed. He climbed out of his crib when he was a little less than year old, and it was as if he had found his calling in life.  He had absolutely no discernment about what he climbed on: Alex would joyfully scramble up any surface that would hold his bodyweight, including furniture, fences, doorways, cars, retaining walls, and roofs.

To complicate the situation, the only thing Alex loved more than climbing was jumping; and for a short period he routinely combined the two activities. There was no warning other than a quick “Hey Mom” or “Hey Dad” preceding his jumps; he would let out a yell and immediately launch his tiny body in the general direction of whichever parent happened to be nearest, blindly believing that he would always be caught.

 I am pleased to report that we made it through that frightful phase with no broken bones or other physical damage and that he (inexplicably) made it to adulthood in one piece. My husband and I were most traumatized by that stage. We still joke that our first gray hairs were courtesy of Alex and his climbing phase.

The first three chapters of the book of Luke contain no climbing or jumping but they give us picture of something that Alex had a lot of: trust and (something he really struggled with) obedience. Surprisingly, every person in the story answered God’s call with a heart of trust and an attitude of obedience.

I say surprisingly because in this narrative God does what He often does with His people. He blithely asked them to trust and obey Him with little or no information concerning the outcome of the plan.

 We often brush past the immensity of the task to which Mary was called. She was expected to teach, train and nurture the Maker of the universe; no one had ever done this before and she had no role model to call and ask for guidance.  Mary’s calling—as high and holy as it was—created a lot of drama for her personally and undoubtedly called her sanity and reputation into question.

Can you imagine the dubious response of her family and faith community when she informed them that her pregnancy came about because the Holy Sprit had come upon her and the Most High had overshadowed her? (Luke 1:35 ESV) I bet there were some sneers and giggles over that story.

 The question the Pharisees directed at Jesus in John 8:19, “Where is your Father?” is a subtle swipe at his origins. It serves as a reminder that, in the minds of many, Mary’s behavior was dubious and Jesus’s paternity was unclear even thirty years after the fact.  

Joseph’s unfailing trust in God is in many ways the most extraordinary and awe-inspiring. After the Angel of Lord set him straight concerning the origins of Jesus he freely accepted the daunting and at times dangerous task of stepfather and protector of the Son of God with grace and earnestness, never once questioning the enormity or fairness of the task to which he was called.

Even Zechariah, the one initial holdout in the trust department, finally got it after nine months of forced silence. He was filled with the Holy Spirit and declared to all within hearing…   

Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to his people and redeemed them. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David~ Luke 1:68-69 NIV

And then…

And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High: for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, 
to guide our feet into the path of peace~ Luke 1:76-79 NIV

In my mind this story begs the question…

What is God asking you to trust Him with or for this Christmas season?

The faith journey inevitably comes down to trust and for that reason God is always asking us to believe Him for something. It may be that the time has come for you to get off the fence and trust God to help you to break that bad habit that has been controlling your life for far too long. Maybe He’s asking you to forgive someone who may not deserve forgiveness or let go of anger towards someone who has hurt you.

It may be time to let go of control and believe that God really will take care of those you love without your assistance or input. It may be that God has been asking you to venture away from your comfort zone and take on that project or task that scares you to death; or maybe its just time for you to really commit your life to God and prove it by being obedient. In God’s way of looking at the world, obedience is the proof of trust. Anything less falls short. 

My hope is that as you celebrate the birth of our Savior you will be lead to trust God with whatever you are struggling with and that your obedience will lead to a deeper understanding of God and a richer faith journey this coming year.  

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight~ Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV