Trust God! Trust God? (Troy wrote this) I think Troy is pretty awesome. I think I will keep him:)

Trust God!  Trust God?

I have a great friend that weighs about 55 pounds and is solely dependent on me.  His name is Justin Time.  Yes pun intended.  He was to be euthanized the day before we got him but my daughter convinced the employees at the pound that she could find him a home immediately.  Hence the name, “just in time”.

Justin depends on me for his food and water, his shelter, and even for companionship.  When we are both in the house, he wants to be right at my feet.  Well, he would rather be in my lap but he is just too big.

If things are busy in the house and he can’t find a good spot for a likely chance of getting petted, he some times will lay on the landing of the stairs where he has a chance of seeing the traffic going up and coming down, as well as having a view of the front yard if the blinds are open.

It occurred to me this morning, as I was making my way down the stairs with my hands full, that dog really trusts me!  When he is on the landing, he will let me step right over him and not even flinch.  Now it is not just that he is too lazy to move.  His senses are very keen and he shows us every day that he has skills and desire to not be pushed around or let anyone hurt him.

Then why doesn’t he move when this clumsy 222 pound human steps within inches of him on both sides?  He trusts me.  What does that mean?  You may find the definition of trust; “confidence in and reliance on good qualities, especially fairness, truth, honor, or ability”.  Justin has confidence in, me that I have the good qualities……..and abilities to protect him.  Wow, maybe that is what makes a dog a dog.  Since I have done good things to and for this creature, he believes that I love him and will continue to do so.

Has any bad thing ever happened to Justin? Yes, he was ill, nearly to death, twice and has even had to be operated on for cancer.  He has been attacked by a neighbor dog three times his size and had to be sewn up.  (That dog was never seen again in the area, your guess is as good as mine) have the bad things he experienced caused him to be bitter to me?  Absolutely not!

Are we as smart as a dog?  Think about it.  God left heaven to come to earth as a man and trade his life to save ours.  A lot better than what we did for Justin.  Why do we have trust issues with God?  Do we believe He wants good things for us and knows what is best for us?  We would answer yes, but we are not ready to fully trust Him with our hearts, our families, and our possessions.  Ok, so we believe God wants good things for us.  Maybe we just don’t think He has the ability to provide.  I think I know how we would answer that question if it was asked by itself.  Of course God has the power to do anything.  Right?

It seems if you put these qualities together, we have no reason to not trust 100% in God’s Word for us.  The sad truth is, when I look around, or within, we constantly hold back on the promises.

God has the desire:

Matthew 7:9-11 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹ If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

God has the power:

Ephesians 3:20  “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think,….”

Let’s get in line with God’s will.  Let’s quit worrying so much about what we are supposed to do and start doing what God puts on our hearts with the opportunities in front of us.

In theory...

A few years ago I worked for a utility company.  One of my responsibilities was to disconnect utilities for non pay.  Fortunately I did not have to go to the houses, but I had to provide a list of the names, addresses and outstanding balances to the servicemen.  The servicemen would have to go to the house, knock on the door and explain why they were there.  More often than not I would get a phone call from whomever was at home (usually, they were not happy to see us)  This could involve several tones of conversations from the client: aggravated to mad or furious to obscene.  Regardless of the tone; at that particular time-in that particular place there were two options…collect or disconnect.    As you can imagine many of the conversations were memorable.

One particular day I sent the serviceman to collect at a young couple’s house.  The wife was at home; she immediately called and she was irate!  I began the standard review: amount owed, last payment made and due dates.  She was sure I had made a mistake because her bill was paid with a check.  I asked if she could call her bank to see if the check had been processed.  Rather irritated with me and in a stern voice she replied, “I do not need to call the bank because the check is still in my checkbook!”  She continued to tell me that in theory her bill is paid because she has written the check to the utility company.  At which I simply reply, “The reality is –you will have no utilities if you do not give the serviceman your check.” 

When you are paying your bills, there is no theory.  Either the bills are paid or they are not.  With Jesus there is no theory.  Either you have accepted Him or you have not.  It is not enough to say that you know who He is, just like it was not enough for her to have written the check. 

With her it was easy to make her theory a reality.  It is also easy to make the theory of Jesus a reality.  Accept Jesus as your personal savior.  He has made a deposit for you with His life.  Your account will never run low, be overdrawn or be disconnected.