“And they were helped against them, and the Hagarites were delivered into their hand, and all that [were] with them: for they cried to God in the battle, and he was intreated of them; because they put their trust in him.” (1Ch 5:20 AV)
Commitment is the key to God’s help. Why would God help if those who thought they needed it didn’t commit? Note they called out while in the battle. No doubt they prayed beforehand. Maybe God told them it was time to fight. They prepared. They trained. They equipped. God said go. They did not stay there and cry out for a need that did not exist. For the LORD to help, they had to commit to the battle. To many want the LORD to answer all their concerns and check off all the boxes before they jump right in. Too many want the LORD to do everything before they move and enjoy God’s work without trusting Him in the midst of it. Note also there is an expectation of God’s hand because of the trust we exercise. We have to be certain that for which we trust the LORD is directed of the LORD. We have to be certain that for which we trust the LORD is according to His will, or, at the very least, presses upon His mercy. Just because we trust the LORD for something does not obligate Him to answer. Yet, we can expect that if all things being equal, if we trust the LORD, He is delighted to answer.
There is a special verse tucked away. “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of [them] whose heart [is] perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.” (2Ch 16:9 AV) We also know the writer of Hebrews states, “But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Heb 11:6 AV) As much as we do not like to live this way, faith is required in our relationship with the LORD. There is no other way around it. The upside is, if we commit to trusting God as He leads, He will work. We try to have it both ways. We want the LORD to work on our behalf without the anxiety to trust Him. We may consider this as unjust or unfair, but trust is the foundation of every deep relationship. When two people are married, their intimacy goes only as far as the trust they share. If they do not trust, the vulnerability and transparency are impossible. We cannot open up and become vulnerable, expecting our spouse to accept us as we are. Trust is the foundation of any relationship worth having.
It is no less true with God. As we cannot grant or expect trust from a spouse until we say “I do”, it is naturally the same with God. Until we commit to trust, why would we expect Him to do anything? He does. He is merciful and kind. He does keep us, provide for us, and guide us. But the relationship He gives goes only so far. It rains on the just and the unjust. We want to see great things from God. But we do not want to commit great things to God. When my wife and I got married, there were many unknowns. We knew each other as best we could. Our relationship was tested in minor things while dating. But until we lived under the same roof and shared the same experiences, trust was shallow at best. Most of our frustration with the LORD boils down to an unwillingness to trust. God is only as close to us as we are willing to place our heart into His hand. Faith is not a mere word. Faith is not an ascent to an idea. Faith is not reasoning things out to find they are true. Faith takes commitment to act upon what we know is true. Even if we don’t have all the answers, faith requires we trust the LORD for what we do not know. This is what the children of Israel did. They committed to a battle that needed to be fought. When they did, God acted.
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