“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8, NIV
The phrase “trust but verify,” has always been a puzzling concept for me. Isn’t this an oxymoron; a contradiction in terms? While trying to sound “nice,” the whole idea seems to be disingenuous at best. Isn’t it reasonable that verification should always precede trust? Something else that is puzzling is that we find trusting God as something difficult to grasp. You might argue, that because God is invisible, you are afraid to put your trust in Him.
This summer, I was introduced to the practice of Yoga. We met on the shore, laying out our mats on the sand to face the ocean. It was early morning, and the sun was visible on the horizon. Pods of dolphin could be seen swimming and feeding not far from the surf. The formation of white, fluffy clouds combined with blue skies created a “canvas” of beauty, unable to be replicated by any artist’s paintbrush or color palette. The breeze smelled like a combination of fresh and salty with a hint of fresh fish. The experience was immediately overwhelmingly serene.
Then, our young instructor invited us to close our eyes and retreat within ourselves to find our grounding. We were to focus on “us” and what it was we were feeling and to embrace whatever the emotion might be. This time was about “us.” I thought to myself, No!! Why would I focus on me when the evidence of God’s presence is so great? This time is about Him and how, no matter what I am feeling, be it sadness, disappointment or even joy and happiness, all of my emotions and their resolution rest in His mighty hands, not mine! Thank you, God!
While the Scripture definition of faith is “being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see,” Hebrews 11:1, NIV, the basis for faith in The LORD can be easily verified. But, we need to open our eyes, not close them; and we need to look outside of ourselves, not within. Our Creator God has revealed the evidence of His faithfulness. Last night, on the very same shore where I stood for the Yoga class, a powerful thunderstorm began to brew. It was such a paradox of the morning conditions. Lightning could be seen going both sideways and up and down as it electrified the sky. God’s “light show” put to shame any fireworks display I had witnessed throughout the summer months!
“Feeling small” is comforting when I know I am in the presence of Almighty God. He invites us to “Taste and see that the LORD is good…” Psalm 34:8, NIV. In other words, He says, “verify.” Then, know that it is not about you or me. It is all about His unfathomable love, that, not because of who we are but in spite of it. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Now, “this” is something in which you and I can unabashedly put our “trust!”