Trust The Process

“Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.” (Ps 62:8 AV)

Pretty simple.  Trust the LORD at all times.  Not a problem!  Should come naturally, shouldn’t it?  The first phrase is the command.  The second is the process.  The third phrase should be the result.  Note there is a natural conflict between the first two phrases.  To trust the LORD at all times might suggest we need not pour out our whole hearts before Him.  If we trust Him at all times, our hearts wouldn’t need pouring out.  Would they?  At least that is what we might assume.  However, it is the process which establishes the command.  We cannot trust God at all times unless we pour out our hearts before Him.  This devotion continues the through of a few days ago.  We must process how we feel and what we think.  We cannot sit on it as though it is of no consequence.  For faith to increase and abide always, there has to be a processing of our emotions and thoughts.  They must come into agreement with who God is and what God does.  If not, we may be stoic, but that does not mean we are trusting with a yielded heart.

Being vulnerable is not easy.  Letting someone in can be potentially painful.  With others, this is true. With the LORD, it is not.  He is completely trustworthy.  He would never do anything that would result in mistrust.  If there is mistrust, it is not God, but us who have erred.  When they were prepping my wife for major surgery, I was struck by how much attention they paid to her emotional and mental state.  The procedure would go as it would go regardless of how anxious she was or how much she did or did not understand the surgery.  Removing cancer is not fluid pursuant to how the patient is emotionally prepared for the operation.  Once they are under, the science of the procedure takes over.  So, in retrospect, there really is no need to treat the emotional or mental needs of the patient prior to surgery.  Unless the health care team considers the whole person the patient, then how anxious they are or how ignorant they might be is really of no concern.  This was not the case with our healthcare team.  These wonderful people took the time to draw pictures, explain every step of the surgery, understand Lisa’s pain tolerance, and review expectations.  They wanted to get Lisa as relaxed as they possibly could.  This they succeeded in doing.  For such a major surgery, I have never seen anyone as calm as she was.

No doubt, Lisa and I had a time or two with the LORD over all of this.  We poured out our hearts to the LORD and were vulnerable regarding how we felt.  We were not supposed to feel fear, but we did.  We were not supposed to be anxious, but we were.  If it wasn’t for my son being with me, I never would have made it through that day.  Or even the following week.  God does not expect us to be anything more than we are.  Or, I should say, He does not expect us to be any more than He has made us to be.  Part of learning to trust is to express how one feels.  Growing in trust means confronting the lack thereof.  Being transparent with God is always a good thing.  He knows how we feel and what we think even if we do not express it.  So, it is better to get it out and deal with it so we can grow in trust.  David had much to fear.  He had much for which to feel anxious.  What he didn’t do was bottle it all up and pretend to be someone he was not.  Have you ever read the book of Psalms?  It is David’s diary.  It is David’s processing plant.  He writes how and what he feels as he works it through with God.  This is a good thing. We cannot grow in faith until we first confront unbelief.