Shattering the Spectacular: Learning to Trust Little by Little
Trust has always been one of those things that doesn’t come easily for me. I know some people who trust everyone right off the bat. They’re welcoming and warm and willing to open their homes to strangers and I am thankful for these friends of mine.
But I’m not one of those people.
I distrust you until you give me a reason to trust you. My default mode is believing that you will do something to harm me, so you’re already playing catch up the moment we meet.
But I’m learning that’s not a healthy way to live. Isolation and paranoia aren’t good breeding grounds for love and empathy and compassion. That’s a dry, barren land — thankfully God’s the master at restoring those places of scorched earth in our hearts.
Now, before we continue, if you’ve been hurt in the past and you placed your trust in someone who hurt or betrayed you, let me say I’m sorry and that sucks. I encourage you to take that hurt and give it over to God. Allow the light of His perfect and healing love begin to bring nourishment to that place of pain. Let Him in and let Him heal you, even if that means taking one little baby step at a time.
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4 Steps For Learning To Trust God More
Today, I mainly want to discuss trusting God. In my life, I’ve found that when I don’t trust others, it stems from a root of not trusting God. Again, I’m not an expert at this, I’m not the most trusting person in the world, but I’ve been learning to trust a little more day by day.
Regularly Examine My Heart
When was the last time you checked in with you?
I’m not a very emotional person, so it’s uncomfortable and abnormal for me to check and see how I’m feeling. I’ll just find myself in this crazy thought pattern, feeling dark and twisty, only to realize that I could’ve prevented all of it had I just turned around a mile down the road.
When you take time to sit in the secret place and quietly examine your heart with the Lord, you can begin to see patterns. It becomes easier to identify and change behavior when you’re in the habit of these regular check-ups.
If it’s been a while since you’ve done this, I encourage you to schedule a check-up today.
It’s Not a Race
Have you ever tried to lose weight before? Then, you eat green things for three days and go to the gym once and then are disappointed when you don’t see results right away (I sure hope I’m not the only one).
Learning to trust is a lot like getting in shape: it’s not going to happen overnight. Developing a trust muscle takes diligent, intentional, and focused effort over time and you can’t do this without getting outside your comfort zone.
It’s okay if you don’t trust easily today, but is it a little easier than it was yesterday? Do you find yourself trusting God more today than you did a month ago? A year ago? If so, that’s something worth celebrating!
Look at Past Behavior
It’s been said over and over again that the best way to predict someone’s future actions is to see how they’ve behaved in the past. But what happens when we apply this same principle to God?
When I’m having trouble trusting God, I always have to return to who He is and how He’s shown himself faithful over the years. I can read the Bible and see how God was faithful to groups of people who disobeyed Him. When I see His love spanning generations, my faith is bolstered.
I can also look back and identify times when God has shown up in my own life or the lives of others.
- Are you struggling to trust God with your finances? Find someone who’s struggled financially.
- Are you struggling to trust God with your family? Talk with someone with a wayward child.
- Are you struggling to trust God with your future? Grab a coffee with someone twice your age.
On the flip side, if you know someone who’s having a hard time trusting God in a situation you’ve walked through, share your story with them and see how your faith grows during the course of that conversation.
Start Today
After reading a post like this, the easiest thing in the world to do is promise to start tomorrow. Changing our behavior in the middle of the day, in the middle of the week, in the middle of the month feels a little uncomfortable. But that’s exactly what I’m encouraging you to do.
Identify what your next step is and, whatever it is, don’t wait. And don’t do it alone. Find someone you can trust who can walk alongside you as you begin to trust God more deeply day by day.
Trust is a muscle and I’m so proud of you for beginning to develop it. Don’t wait until tomorrow to begin examining your heart, or honestly communicating with God, or choosing to trust Him a little more in that area you’re struggling in. Start today and know that we’re all on this journey with you, cheering you on!
Do You Struggle To Trust God?
What’s one practical step you can take this week to trust Him a little more deeply?
[ctt template=”2″ link=”cdL00″ via=”yes” ]Do you struggle when it comes to trusting God?[/ctt]
About Sarah Callen
Sarah is an entrepreneur and published author, currently living in Dallas. Her dreams include founding businesses, giving strategically, and sharing art with the world.
Some of her favorites include: coffee shops, rainy days, a well-crafted sentence, and a beautiful work of art.
Some dislikes include: having her photo taken, going grocery shopping, and driving in traffic.
Her life motto is: Every number has a name, every name has a story, and every story is worthy of being shared.
Visit her online at workinprogressblog.co/
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It’s not a race – love that point! I find myself frustrated if I can’t accomplish something faster than I’d like to. Right now, jealousy is to me what trust is to you. I have to fight against it constantly, and I get really upset with myself when I can’t beat it. Thanks for this reminder!
Jealousy can be so sneaky, I hate it when it rears its ugly head! That’s amazing that you’re aware of this tendency and are actively fighting against it!
Its so easy to forget God’s past work and His faithfulness. It’s easier to see what’s right in front of us and base our thoughts, emotions, and lives off those circumstances rather than trusting God. For me, when times get tough – trusting God goes out the window. Its a muscle I don’t want to work out. What a good reminder to keep trusting little by little.
I’m the same way! When things get rough, I want to buckle down and take over again, muscling my way to a solution instead of trusting that he’s a good father. Thank God that he’s patient with us!
It can be much easier to trust God for something we are hoping for,but much difficult for a situation that looks impossible.But you have encouraged us to take a step no matter how small,and trust God even when the situation looks impossible.
Thank you for the encoursgement.
You’re welcome! It’s amazing how small steps over time can take us to a radically different place than we were before. Just keep moving and trusting him!
I love the point about starting *today. I know that I have a procrastination issue. Oh, I’ll start tomorrow then tomorrow turns into Monday and so on. It’s also easy to turn it into a comparison game. Glad this point was made also. Every relationship is so personal to the person and we need to try to remember we’re all in our own lane but running as a united front.
Yes! I love that image of us each being in our own lane but running together, that’s such a beautiful picture! We don’t have to be looking around and wondering what everyone else is doing or how they’re running their race, we can keep our eyes on the prize and fill our God-given space!
Trust has been a major lesson I’m learning too. I lost the trust of those closest to me, so rebuilding it takes a long time.
It’s funny because my word for this year is “steadfast” and I think that word and trust go hand in hand.
I had never thought about it before, but I think the two definitely go hand in hand! We can be steadfast, not because of our own strength but because we trust him and his promises. I’m praying for you as you work to rebuild that trust that has been broken.
It’s not a race- you’re so right! This was very timely for me!
Thanks, Sarah, and God bless you!