Learning to Trust

I had a great reminder today from a chapter in my Bible study of how important it is to trust God with our lives.  That is not as easy as it sounds, but I know that for the times in my life when I have trusted him I get through the tough moments a lot easier.  Yet I spend almost everyday stressed about something.  At least lately I have.  The Bible verse this week is Isaiah 43:1b-3a:

"Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.  I have called you by name; you are mine.  When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.  When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown.  When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.  For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior." 

I know one thing is for sure...I have lots of fears.  I have stupid fears like a fear of parking garages and serious fears of things like putting my teenager behind the wheel of a car.  Then there are the fears of failure or not being a good mom.  Whatever my fears are I know they keep me in bondage from being who God created me to be.  I studied this verse this morning and found some important points. 

"Do not be afraid"-God is telling us here to not fear!!!  It is so important that he tells us 365 times in the Bible to not fear.  I guess I am not a good listener...

"You are mine"-This is such a humbling point to me.  God is calling me his.  He knows my name and he knows what I struggle with.  He loves me unconditionally no matter what mistakes I have made.  When all others have forgotten me or abandoned me he is still there.  If he loved me enough to know the exact day I was going to be born on then I am his.  

"I will be with you"-He is with us through the storms of life.  He is with us when the flames are too hot and will feel like we are being consumed by life's trials.  He is not saying here that we may go through these things, he is saying "when" we go through them we can trust that he is there with us.  No matter how burdened down we get or how much we struggle he is there somewhere in the midst of it if we just look and trust him.  He will not let us go through it alone.  

I have a hard time believing this verse sometimes because in my experience it is not easy to trust people.  People hurt us, abandon us, and let us down.  People say one thing and do another.  God is saying that he will be with me.  I have a hard time grasping that someone I can't see will always be there.  If the earthly people that say they will be there for me disappear then how can I trust that God will be there for me?  

I know this because he has not let me down yet.  When all others let me down he is there to guide me through it and to where he wants me to be.  "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."-Proverbs 3:5-6

I don't know about you, but it just seems easier to lean on my own understanding.  I am a "if you want something done right then do it yourself" kind of person.  I can take care of myself.  I can handle my own problems.  Those times when things are overwhelming it is so easy to forget that God is there to carry us through.  When times are tough we have two choices-we can either drown or find the strength to carry on.  I try to find that strength from within, but it doesn't work like that.  I drown every time I try to handle trials on my own.  I know that when I trust God and allow him to direct my path then he will give me what I need and show me where to go.