TRUST

Theme 27/10/2017 Admin

Genesis 12:1-2 Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a...

Genesis 12:1-2

Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing.

INSIGHT

-Trust in Hebrew is written as batach & it means to rely upon, have confidence in, devote to, believe in or to have faith in someone, something or God. Trust is confidence, hope or belief in another person’s words as well as actions. It is also one’s value or characteristic that need a foundation or basis before forming a bond with another person or ideal. Trust gives a sense of firm reliance or dependence on another person’s integrity, truthfulness, ability, strength or character. We can trust someone, something or God but can only trust in God.

-Abraham trusted in God & obeyed fully His instructions since they began their interactions. His faith was tested severally & every time he remained obedient & loyal to God. Initially, he was instructed to move from his comfort zone, Haran to a foreign land. While on the move; famine struck & they moved to Egypt. Sarah was indeed beautiful & Pharaoh’s servants took her into their masters house. The Lord plagued Pharaoh & his household because of Sarah. Abraham was immediately send out of Egypt with a lot of livestock, gold & silver. That meant that him & his household would not lack basic provisions any more until they got to the promised land. Abraham excelled in various other tests of faith, was blessed & became a father of many nations. Almost all the major people sited in the Bible exhibited signs of faith in one way or another i.e. Sarah, Noah, Daniel, Ruth, Samson, Jeremiah, Job, Mary, Paul etc. We are also called to have total trust in God for without faith it is impossible to please Him.

PRAYER

Lord our Father, we thank You for this far You have brought us. We have seen Your mighty hand in different ways & experienced many opportunities in our lives which transcend into the future. We give You praise. Instil in us firmer faith during difficult times, hope at the wake of disappointment & peace when comforted by crisis. All glory & praise belong to You. Amen

Psalm 37:3-5

Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.

INSIGHT

-Sometime we afflict & perplex ourselves with thoughts about our current situations & future events, but God instructs us to refer them to Him. To cast all our burdens & cares upon Him & shall bring them to pass. Once we fully depend on God for protection & support, & continue to do things that are pleasing to Him, we have long life full of quietness, peace & joy.

PRAYER

You are our rock & fortress Father, in You we trust. You are our shield & stronghold, in You we depend on. We cast all our burdens & cares upon Your hands Lord, bring them to pass & provide better present & future opportunities for us, our families & nation. We give You thanks. Amen

Jeremiah 17:5-8

Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength, Whose heart departs from the Lord. For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, And shall not see when good comes, But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, In a salt land which is not inhabited. “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.

INSIGHT

-Jews placed confidence in the assistance of Egyptians & their other allies, when threatened by the Chaldeans (Jer 2:36-37). They found rest in the military influence of Egyptians & became like shrubs in the desert not able to see when good comes. In the same way; sometimes we totally rely on our spouses, siblings, relatives, friends, employers, clients, pastors, priests, leaders, donors etc. & forget that God is our only provider, sustainer & strength, & that human beings are His vessels. Our eyes look away from the cross & our hearts forget Gods’ goodness, mercy, love, faithfulness & grace. The result of this is disappointment, frustration & loneliness like a shrub in the desert, in a desolate salt land. We are reminded to fully rely on God so that we may access His blessings & always gaining favour, like a tree; planted by the river of water, whose leaves remain green in the year of drought, economic slow down & political instability, giving no room for anxiety thus yielding much fruit.

PRAYER

In Your love, mercy, wisdom, power, kindness, faithfulness & grace Father, we rest secure. We ask for forgiveness for the many times we have placed our trust in mortals. Cleanse us from all unrighteousness & renew our minds to always believe in You. You have reminded us that all glory belongs to You Jesus, help us to always put all our trust in You. Plant us by the river of water that we may never lack any good thing despite the drought situations we experience in our lives, nation & societies. We humbly ask You to give us a president who will follow Your will. All glory & honour belongs to You, now & forever. Amen

2 Corinthians 3:4-5

And we have such trust through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God

INSIGHT
-Self-sufficiency has been pointed out in several occasions to imply self righteousness & dependence on wealth. Jesus in Luke 18:9-14 distinguished between a Pharisee’s prayer & a tax collector’s; who were praying in the temple. The Pharisee trusted himself to be righteous, boasted & despised others. The tax collector on the other hand humbled himself, asked for mercy & was justified. He brought out another aspect of self-reliance when He mentioned that we cannot serve two masters, that we have to choose between God or mammon (Luke 16:13). Paul echoed this in 1 Tim 6:17-19, when he cautioned the rich against trusting in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. By sharing what we have with others, we store up our treasures in heaven & have eternal life. He also reminds us that Christ our Lord sustains us & makes us whole through His love, mercy & grace, & not by our own power or might.

PRAYER
You make us whole Father, we surrender our hearts to You that You may fill us with Your love. We have deceived ourselves many times when we have placed our trust in self righteousness & wealth; & for this reason we humbly ask for forgiveness & direction. You have taken good care of us since we were infants, we thank You. We ask You to help us during this election period; to give us peace & that everything will be well according to Your purpose. We claim that no weapon fashioned against us & our nation shall prosper in Your name, Jesus. May Your victory reign in our land today. All authority belongs to You Lord, now & forever. Amen

Mark 5:34

And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”

INSIGHT

-The woman with the issue of blood suffered much affliction for 12 years & had spent all her money going to different physicians. At her point of despair; she heard that Jesus was coming & knew that, that was her last chance. She trusted that by just touching the fringe of Christs’ garment, she would get well. Her faith in God made her well. Many times we have lost hope in life trying to solve our own problems without involving God. Jesus reminds us to have faith in Him & He will deliver us from all our afflictions.

SUMMARY

-Trust in Hebrew is written as batach & it means to rely upon, have confidence in, devote to, believe in or to have faith in someone, something or God. Trust is confidence, hope or belief in another person’s words & actions. It is also one’s value or characteristic that need a foundation or basis before forming a bond with another person or ideal. Trust gives a sense of firm reliance or dependence on another person’s integrity, truthfulness, ability, strength or character. We can trust someone, something or God but can only trust in God.

-Abraham had complete trust in God & was always obedient. His faith was tested severally & every time he remained faithful & loyal to God. At one point; he was instructed to move from Haran to a foreign land & never questioned. Famine struck while on the move & they sort for food in Egypt. Pharaoh’s servants recommended Sarah to their master for she was very beautiful & she was taken into his house. The Lord plagued Pharaoh & his household because of Sarah which got Pharaoh worried & he sent Abraham out of Egypt with a lot of livestock, gold & silver. Due to his faith, Abraham got enough resources to enable him provide for his household until the time they got to the promised land. He was named the father of faith as he excelled in various other tests, was blessed & also became a father of many nations. The scriptures remind us to trust in the Lord with all your heart, not to lean on our own understanding, to acknowledge Him in all our ways & He promises to direct our paths (Pro 3:5-6). Sometimes we forget to rely on God in all our ways & start looking for our own solutions. When we fail; that’s when we sort for His help. Some put their trust in mortals e.g. politicians, spouses, relatives, employers, clients, pastors, priests etc. which result in disappointment, frustration & loneliness like a shrub in the desert, in a desolate salt land that harbours no life. Others put their trust in their self righteousness & on wealth. Like the Pharisee who beat his chest & boasted in prayer describing how righteous he was & looked down upon others. The tax collector exercised humility, asked for mercy & was justified (Lk 18:9-14). We should always remember that Christ did not come for the righteous but for sinners thus remain humble all the time & ask for mercy. Wealth can cause a deceptive mind-set of comfort in self sufficiency. Trusting in earthly riches is indeed vanity for they are uncertain & can vanish any time. God is the giver of wealth & all things for sustenance & enjoyment. Thus by sharing what we have with others, we acknowledge Him as the provider, returning all the glory to Him & thus store up our treasures in heaven which yields eternal life (1 Tim 6:17-19). Jesus calls us to trust in Him completely, to delight ourselves in Him & do good, to commit your way & trust in Him for He shall give us the desires of our heart (Ps 37:3-5). He also assures us that when we rely on Him, He will take away all our anxiety in times of drought & trouble; & promises us abundant blessings like a tree planted by the river of water (Jer 17:5-8).

PRAYER

We beseech You Father, with humility in our hearts asking for mercy. We cannot thank You enough for leading us through the political & economic drought seasons we have experienced in our country. Many time You have done wonders in our lives & continue to shape our future, we praise You. Help us to completely trust in You; our strength, sustainer & provider. Level all the mountains in our lives, families & nation, Lord. Be with all the candidates who are undertaking their final exams & help them to emerge victorious. All glory belong to You Lord, now & forever. Amen