The Trust Factor
The Trust Factor
“I do not trust in my bow, my sword doesn’t bring me victory.” Psalm 44: 6
“You sit around here and you spin your little webs and you think the whole world revolves around you and your money. Well, it doesn’t Mr. Potter.”
George Bailey from It’s a Wonderful Life
Our culture insists that we rely on ourselves, our independence, and abilities. However, the psalmist in this verse makes a direct statement against misplaced trust. I wonder how the Christmas story would have played out if the characters trusted more in themselves than in God? What if Joseph trusted more in his own judgment and plans, and followed through on his idea to quietly divorce Mary? Or what if Mary had depended more on her reputation than on God’s plan to bear and bring up the Son of God? What complications would ensue? Thankfully, that’s not what happened.
In our modern world, we have ample opportunity for misplaced trust: our earning ability, our specialized skills, intelligence, physical capabilities, technology, and the list goes on. As we reach the culmination of the Advent season, let us be a people who regularly point out to this world that we trust in God, not in the tools that God has placed in our lives.
Lord, thank you for the gifts you have given me. But I want to declare to you and myself that I do not trust in my _______, or my _______ doesn’t bring me victory. Like Mary, like Joseph, and like the Magi, you are the one who helps me overcome. Amen.
Written by Stephanie Smith
“I do not trust in my bow, my sword doesn’t bring me victory.” Psalm 44: 6
“You sit around here and you spin your little webs and you think the whole world revolves around you and your money. Well, it doesn’t Mr. Potter.”
George Bailey from It’s a Wonderful Life
Our culture insists that we rely on ourselves, our independence, and abilities. However, the psalmist in this verse makes a direct statement against misplaced trust. I wonder how the Christmas story would have played out if the characters trusted more in themselves than in God? What if Joseph trusted more in his own judgment and plans, and followed through on his idea to quietly divorce Mary? Or what if Mary had depended more on her reputation than on God’s plan to bear and bring up the Son of God? What complications would ensue? Thankfully, that’s not what happened.
In our modern world, we have ample opportunity for misplaced trust: our earning ability, our specialized skills, intelligence, physical capabilities, technology, and the list goes on. As we reach the culmination of the Advent season, let us be a people who regularly point out to this world that we trust in God, not in the tools that God has placed in our lives.
Lord, thank you for the gifts you have given me. But I want to declare to you and myself that I do not trust in my _______, or my _______ doesn’t bring me victory. Like Mary, like Joseph, and like the Magi, you are the one who helps me overcome. Amen.
Written by Stephanie Smith
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