Part 1

Have you ever thought about whether you actually trust God? More often you may ask yourself whether you believe in God - or whether you believe enough. But when it comes to faith, it must also be about trust in God. Because you don't believe anyone you don't trust. And you don't trust anyone you don't believe a word of it.

I have found throughout my life that I have the ability to theoretically trust God: theoretically, I believe that God is with me. When asked if he wants to help me, I answer: "Yes, theoretically yes...".

Did Jesus pay for my sins and absolve me of all charges? "In theory, yes." The question then is why, practically speaking, do I still feel constantly accused and judged...

The problem, of course, is that theoretical trust in God practically means, "I don't trust you!"

Do you also theoretically trust God sometimes? Then I invite you to consider with me why this is so and what you can do about it. Worth it! Because if you never learn, God practically trusting, you are about to miss the most important thing in your life: experiencing God.

The Holy Spirit is imprisoned in unbelieving believers. And he wants to break out.  

Bill Johnson

who god misscan't trust him vertrust

Mistrust is important. It keeps us from running blindly into great dangers. As soon as you see an inconsistency, the alarm bells go off. And that's good -

Except of course someone is using your inherently correct distrust disposition to dupe you.

And this game unfortunately presents itself to us humans in countless experiences in real life as well as in stories, fables and movies.

Human distrust lends itself perfectly to a double game. Because it is enough to simply "sow" a doubt. This thought gets stuck in your brain and quickly takes on a life of its own.

Distrust and as it always doubts

This game of evil (that's what I call it now) is often found in human history. The first time probably with Adam and Eve: "Did God really say that you should not eat of the tree? He's only saying that because he's keeping something from you.” The thought is sown.

The British writer Jane Austen, in her 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice, paints the same story: the kind-hearted Mr Darcy is condemned by Elizabeth because the charming Mr Wickham has bad things to say about him. In the end it turns out that Wickham is the real bad guy who did the bad thing and Mr. Darcy is the real misjudged hero of the whole story.

The same principle applies to the Star Wars films: Darth Sidious lies to Anakin and sees in him the doubt that drives him insane: "The (good) force is not strong enough to protect you and your great love! Turn to the dark power and you will be able to protect your wife!” Anakin believes the voice of evil and loses exactly what he wanted to protect by doing so: he kills the love of his life in his growing, mistrusting anger.

Yes, distrust is often good. But distrust based on a lie is catastrophic.

It is no different in the relationship with God. Here the thoughts of distrust face and fight against the belief in you. The distrust would only be correct if God were actually a villain...

God the villain?

From the beginning, the goal of evil has been to turn you away from trusting in God. Who is this bad guy? Jesus calls him the one who lies as soon as he opens his mouth (John 8:44).

You don't believe that there is a dark and deeply evil force in this world? That evil is just a pipe dream – the Western world is pretty much alone with this idea.

I want to encourage you: look at the incredibly and abysmal evil deeds of people who devour their own children with unspeakably cruel and heinous deeds. In such lives, evil is within reach.

There is evil in this world that acts strategically and wisely at the same time. And it's trying hard to keep whispering this thought to you, "God is not good. Look here and look there what he has done again. It was him!” Then, as if in a trance, people often join in: “Yes, it was him! Why did God do that!"

Which voice can I believe?

The difficult thing about situations of mistrust is this: How can you recognize the truth? It's really not that easy. But there are also good clues that help with orientation like a compass.

Because what do you do in your relationship with God if you find it difficult to trust? Are you cautious about your trust with good reason or not? If you want to live with God, you certainly have a desire to trust God.

But I'm sure sometimes you're afraid to trust God too. I want to tell you: there are reasons for this and it is worth looking for them and examining them a little. Because the question arises: Shouldn't you also distrust these reasons for distrusting God?

Why trust God? Because he's good!

Wikipedia gives the following definition in English:

Trust is a person's willingness to be vulnerable to another person. And this on the assumption that the one who is trusted will behave in a way that benefits the truster. Furthermore, the Truster has no control over the actions of the Trustee.

That's really the only reason why trust makes sense. if god is good If he is up to evil or is evil, it makes sense to distrust him.

Because that is so, you must ask yourself the question: Is God good? Because: if he isn't, it would be foolish to trust him. If you have answered this question well with "Yes, he is good!" I want to ask you: do you think God is good to you? Is everything who he is and what he does good for you? Do you wish for everything He has prepared for you?

I've often noticed that Christians aren't as quick to shout yes and hooray when the topic goes in this direction. I quickly sense a reluctance to surrender myself fully to God's will, usually mixed with an underlying sense of duty.

Why is that? I think that's the most important question of all!

Trusting evil goes against your nature

When God says we should to him fully trust, one thing was very clear to him: for us humans it is impossibleto trust someone evil. It's not just trained. God made you this way! He has put an inner compass in you that you protect yourself from bad people and become suspicious.

If you have lost this protective mechanism, in most cases it has to do with the fact that you have been trained out of it. Maybe through the parents, who everyone says are supposed to be good. But your parents just really weren't or aren't.

Maybe other people have shaped you in an unhealthy way. It can then be difficult to use trust and distrust “correctly”. But there is good news: If you spend time with God, who made you wonderfully, He can put things right. You can put your view of things back in order - for example, realign this inner compass.

Only if God is good can he demand trust

If God made you this way, there are two possibilities:

Either God is a hypocrite, demanding something of you that He knows you cannot meet: full trust in Him, i.e. a completely open heart, even though he does things that hurt you and are bad for you.

Or else God really is perfectly good. And that also means good for you in all situations.

That's not to say that God won't judge and punish when people completely reject Him - and like to do evil as dogs like to eat their poop. God isn't doing anything wrong there. Because without correction there is no justice.

How God shows himself to us in Jesus

God shows himself clearly in Jesus. He carried a great burden to achieve one goal: He wanted to set you free. You were worth it to him when he died on the cross for your sin.

The burden of your guilt and your hurts hit him really hard - not just your burden and guilt, but that of everyone who has ever lived and will live.

That's how he is, God the Father: He suffers for his children and helps them out of the biggest shithole. And that's how a father and mother should be: like him.

If you believe that God is just waiting for you to open your heart to face a difficult fate, you can never trust God. Trusting someone who abuses you or treats you badly is only possible by bending your heart. And that's very unhealthy. Then it may look like trust, but it definitely doesn't feel like trust.

God knows we can't trust him when we think he's about to hit us

The evolution of suffering

God does not want to make you a better person by sending you an incurable chronic disease or by letting your partner or parent die.

Many religious people believe in an "evolution of suffering", as if at the end of suffering there would be a new, better person.

But it is not the evolution of suffering that changes you - it is God's Holy Spirit!

The thing is, people can suffer an awful lot and end up being horrible or incredibly wonderful people.

In the same way, people can hardly suffer and end up being wonderful or incredibly terrible people.

However, what often happens through suffering is that we begin to question. This can be a very important process that in the end really causes a person to change course. Often because he realizes how destructive the paths he took without God were.

"Every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from above, from the Father of light, in whom there is no change, neither of light and darkness" (James 1:17). "God is light, and in him is no darkness" (1 John 1:5).

What is the education that God expects of us?

But what does God ask of us to grow in our relationship with him? Above all, there are three things that God consciously expects of us, which everyone must experience on the one hand, but which are also an opportunity to grow on the other:

1. Trusting God despite suffering:

This life is full of beauty but also full of difficulties, problems and hardships. God doesn't spare us that. Everyone experiences difficulties, some more, others less. That in itself is unfair. All problems and difficulties have one temptation in common: that you doubt whether God is good. Adam and Eve are the first example of this doubt. This is your challenge and the question for you every day: Do you think God is more unjust than you? Or do you hold on to what you've already seen of him and say in the heavy, "No, God is still good. And I will see his goodness.” That's what decides it: do I belong to God or not?
In difficult situations, do you immediately doubt that God is good?

2. From Sin to Holiness

If you want to cling to sin, that's a bad goal. In that case, you really can't trust God to support you in this. Because another word for sin is "destructive action." And that's what God wants to set you free from. He is constantly inviting you to change your thinking and make room for His Holy Spirit. Then he can show you what reality is and that stinginess is not cool; that adultery is as destructive and insidious as assassination of people you love, and it really is Nothing has to do with “true love”; and that you are a slave when you live in sin.
Do you want to see the truth about your sin and become free?

3. His vision becomes your vision

God has a goal that corresponds to his nature: He wants (desperate) people to meet him and become free. God invites you to really get to know him and have a heart like his. This entails certain risks. Because then what is important to him becomes important to you. He endured much suffering to save others. This heart then beats in you.
When you really love someone, you care about how they see the world.
Are you ready to empathize with God? Do you want to get to know him close enough to see what moves him?
Acts 26:17f

Suffering is not the power to become a better person. God Himself is that power.

A person who opens his heart completely to God and trusts in him will become more and more beautiful every year through God himself. You know people where this is not the case? Then you may rightly question whether they really have their roots in Jesus. For Jesus' reasoning was this:

"A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit."
Jesus, ca. 30 AD

But before you point fingers at Christians who you think are not good enough, look at yourself and ask yourself: do I let God into all areas of my life so that I become a person who works for myself and others is a blessing and not a curse?

God is not the author of destruction, chaos, murder and manslaughter. But of course what we cannot avoid in this life is the question of why he can allow it. There are many good answers to this question – but that would be another topic. And yet, you may not find an answer in this lifetime that fully satisfies you. But you are made for eternity! Did you know that? Until then, God wants to give you something incredible: His absolute closeness to you and his peace, which is better than any answer can ever be. Can't you believe that? That's because you have far, far too low an expectation of his closeness and peace!

Don't miss the opportunity today to finally meet him and get to know him a little better!

You don't trust God? Don't accuse yourself!

So don't blame yourself if you don't trust God, but ask yourself today:

Why don't I trust God? What am I afraid of?

What do I fear will happen if I invite God and say, "You can do whatever you want in my life."

God tells you to trust him as a child trusts his good father. He knows exactly that a child never trust I canwhen the father does things that are not good for the child. When the father beats up his child and then says it's for his own good, the child knows: that's not the truth. It closes itself – it cannot do otherwise. But God is calling you to trust because He is both perfectly good and devotedly loving for with you,.

You will never be able to fully trust God unless you first believe that he is good (to you).

Do you believe God when he says he's good? This is how your rebirth begins: that you know the truth above God believe. Not, that you on believe him Many believe on God. But the power to change lies in believing in them for who they really are.

We do not need great faith, but faith in a great one (and good ones) God. HudsonTaylor

Put down a piece of paper over the next few days or start a note on your cell phone asking: what are you afraid of? I would be very happy to hear from you too. And then realize that when you give your life to God and invite him into every living space, he wants to come as king and servant. He doesn't want to dominate your life. He wants to serve you, care for you and be a blessing to you. But that's impossible if he can't also be your boss. But who doesn't want a boss like Jesus!

In this way he prepares you to become a servant for other people yourself, where people find protection and strength - with your gifts, limitations and passions. Then you become a person who is even able to share in the suffering of others.  

Do you want to decide today to invite God more every day and say to him:

"All I am is yours and I trust you will not harm me."