The Problem With Trusting God

So, you've got a problem.

Maybe it's big. As in, you've lost your job and don't know how you're going to pay your bills. Or, you've just gone through a terrible breakup or divorce.

More likely, it's smaller. Like saying something stupid to your spouse, or that annoying neighbor's dog that won't shut up.

When you're faced with a problem - of any size - we've got two basic choices. But only one works. At least in the long run.

What We Usually Do

When something goes wrong, we usually put our hope in others, or ourselves. 

For example, I'm close to releasing an online course I've completed for guys who want to date, lead and marry a godly woman. I've been working on it forever (#exagerration), and I'm really excited to share it.

But, there's just one problem. I've added a lesson on the importance of the gospel, but I can't save it because of a software glitch.

How did I (try to) handle it? 

By taking every troubleshooting step known to man. And, when that didn't work, I got angry. (Which didn't help.)

And then, I reached out to all the different companies that could help me. We're making progress, but it's still not fixed. I've been angry, anxious and frustrated.

In a nutshell, I've tried fix the problem by relying on myself, and others.

Don't get me wrong. When we experience difficulties, of course there are steps we should take. And others are a gift from God, and can often help us out.

But in my case, I never really asked God for help. He was a last-ditch option, and I didn't functionally believe he would do much. In the moment, I reasoned, is God really going to resolve a software conflict for me?

Trust Gone Wrong: The Curious Case Of King Asa

King Asa of Judah was one of Israel's best kings. Over the course of 35 years, he trusted God with his whole heart (2 Chronicles 15:17).

I'm pretty sure he was a 1 on the Enneagram (Reformer). 

He:

• got rid of all the idols in the land (2 Chronicles 15:8)
• repaired the temple's altar, which had fallen into disrepair (2 Chronicles 15:9)
• led the entire nation in turning back to the Lord (2 Chronicles 15:12-15)
• deposed his own mother from her official position because of her idolatry (2 Chronicles 15:16)

He was faithful to God, at a cost, for a very long time.

After that, he ran into a big problem with the King of Israel, Baasha, who basically set a blockade around his kingdom. Asa had already overcome an Ethiopian army twice his own army's size with God's help (see 2 Chronicles 14), so this was going to be no big deal, right?

So, he put his trust in God again, and that was that. Easy-peasy.

Wait; that's not what really happened.

Instead, Asa:

• sent priceless gold and silver treasures from God's temple and his own house to a foreign king, and asked for his help against Baasha (2 Chronicles 16:2-3)
• got called out by a prophet for not trusting God (2 Chronicles 16:7-9)
• refused to trust God even when he was afflicted with a serious foot disease, instead putting his hope in his physicians, and then died (2 Chronicles 16:12-13)

Even when faced with a problem that paled in comparison to what he had faced - and overcome - before, Asa put his trust in others instead of God.

The Problem With Trusting God

It's easy to look at him and almost laugh in disbelief. Like, Asa, what were you thinking? You should have known better! God proved himself to you over and over again. And you trusted him for so long. Why would you abandon him now?

But here's the thing is: his self-trust, and trust in his frenemy (Ben-Hadad of Syria), actually worked. At least, at first.

⁴ And Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, and they conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel-maim, and all the store cities of Naphtali. ⁵ And when Baasha heard of it, he stopped building Ramah and let his work cease. ⁶ Then King Asa took all Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber, with which Baasha had been building, and with them he built Geba and Mizpah. (2 Chronicles 16:4-6)

Yes, Asa's strategy was (literally) costly, but he got the result he wanted pretty much right away: the king of Israel stopped building the blockade, and left. Asa was even able to start fortifying his position so it wouldn't happen again.

We're a lot like that, aren't we? 

When we're faced with a problem, it's so natural to look at our own - and others' - resources as the real solution. Sure, we might throw up a quick prayer. But, we don't often really believe God can - or will - help. Even if he has before. With far bigger problems. 

For example, God provided the funds we needed for our autistic son's therapy for several years. Even when that cost represented about a third of my annual salary!

'Yeah', I tell myself, but can he really help me with that technical issue on my blog?

Can he really help you find a godly spouse? Or help you and your spouse work through that thorny issue you keep butting heads over?

When you're faced with a dilemma in your life, where do you turn for help? You may know the right answer is 'God', but it's hard to trust him in the midst of it, isn't it?

The problem with trusting God is that he might not deliver us like he has in the past. At least on our timeframe. Or, in the way we want him to. 

And, like Asa, often our ingenuity, perseverance and network produces great results for a season.

Go Get Jesus: The Power Of Simple Trust & Faith

One day, Peter's mother-in-law became sick with a serious fever. (Mark 1:30)

What did Peter and the other disciples do for her?

I probably would have started out with some ibuprofen, then run out to the nearest pharmacy if that didn't work. Or, if things got really rough, taken her to urgent care.

But the people there that day had a far better, simpler idea. 'Immediately they told [Jesus] about her. And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.' (Mark 1:31)

Instead of trying to figure things out on their own, they got Jesus involved. Right away; not as a last resort. 

And Jesus provided the help they needed.

Obviously, it's not always that simple. Many times, we ask God for help, and it doesn't come right away. Or even in our lifetime. Many of the most faith-full figures in the bible 'died in faith, not having received the things promised'. (Hebrews 11:13)

God doesn't promise that help will come on our timeline, so it's not as if he's letting us down.

As I look at my life, I'm starting to wonder how many times I've missed out on God's help because I don't trust him. And because I don't trust him, I put all my effort into figuring it out myself. Or, leaning on others in an unhealthy way.

When we have a problem we can't solve, there are ultimately only two kinds of help: 

1. trust ourselves and/or others 
2. trust God

The only one that honors God, and works in the long run, is option 2. Slowly, but surely, we learn to cry out with the psalmist, 'It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.' (Psalm 119:71) 

Although we don't search suffering out, God will continue to provide us with problems we can't solve so that we learn to lean on him. 

Your Turn

1. What's a problem you're facing that you can't solve on your own?
2. To what extent have you relied on yourself and/or others primarily versus trusting in God?
3. What have the results been in the 1) short-term, and 2) long-term? 
4. What would it look like to trust more fully in God?