Trust in the Lord with All Thine Heart

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5 KJV)

Why would God command us to trust in Him with all our hearts and not depend on our own understanding? The answer is simple:

“There is a way which seems right to a man and appears straight before him, but at the end of it is the way of death.” (Proverbs 14:12 AMPC)

Who amongst us has not suffered the consequences of a bad decision before? Remember how we are sometimes so sure about ourselves before deciding what to do. But after the choice is made and the verdict of the outcome is before us, the results bite like a viper or stink like rotten eggs. Therefore, the Lord commands us to trust in Him to save us from ourselves.

To trust in the Lord means to depend, rely or count on His wisdom to guide us in life. When we trust in Him, we seek to know what He says and use His words or wisdom to direct our lives. An example of trust—probably the most noble form of human trust—is trusting Jesus as our Savior. Even though Christianity does not make sense to the natural human mind, we depend entirely on what God tells us about sin, the sinner, heaven, hell, Satan, etc.

But trusting in God is not limited to salvation. Often, it involves the daily decisions we make: who to marry, embarking on a ministry, a financial move, family relocation, business decision, etc. As believers, it is crucial to cultivate the heart’s attitude of wanting to know what God says about the things in our lives. Sometimes, this trust is simply expressed as praying and asking God for direction.

Trusting God and not leaning on our own understanding does not mean we are mindless or intellectually impotent. The reason is far more complex. It is because the fallen human heart is evil, deceptive and crafty; it is a sinister deceptive enemy within, closer than Satan, the deceiver from without. In this regard, Jeremiah says:

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9 KJV)

Therefore, when God commands us to trust in Him, His primary purpose is to save us from ourselves. How many of you, too, have also felt (the heart) that your life will stop if you did not have that thing only to have it later and discover it was not as you thought (the heart again)?

We are often experts in making ourselves believe lies, rationalize bad motives, ignore warning signs, capitalize on potential benefit, protect our opinions more than the US secret service protects the US president, etc. Whatever currently seems so right to us, trust in the Lord in all your heart and allow Him to save you numerous heartaches and headaches. Even as Christians, the only way to escape the deception of our hearts is to bring it under the Spirit’s influence at all times.

When was the last time you did something which you regretted afterwards?