Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight.
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Father Mike Schmitz, a popular American Catholic priest, defines anxiety in this way. “Anxiety is fear of the future coupled with one’s fear that they won’t have the ability to cope with that future.” Anxiety is such an uncomfortable feeling. It’s like dizziness or vertigo when we do anything to get ourselves more stable. We distract ourselves or indulge ourselves. We try to talk ourselves out of it or approach it with logic or statistics. If all that fails, we might try to self-medicate with addictions. But God knows that we have anxiety-- there are many Scriptures that tell us how to deal with it.
Proverbs 3:5-6 are well-known and much-loved verses, but they bring up a lot of questions. What does it look like to trust in God? What does it mean to acknowledge God-- in all our ways? How will he make straight our paths?
Trust in the Lord
Trust can be defined as "to believe in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something." When we trust in the Lord, we are actually praising him for his attributes. We know that he is reliable, that he will do as he says. We know that his ways are true. We know that he can do amazing things and that he has power to accomplish his will. When we trust, we depend on God which keeps our relationship with him strong.
Of course, God doesn’t always act in the way that we think he should. He doesn’t prevent us from suffering. He has purposes beyond our knowledge or understanding. But he will always be with us, loving us and blessing us, no matter what happens. We can trust him for that.
With all your heart
The Biblical view of the heart is that it is not just the emotional centre but also the source of our motivations, our thinking, our decisions, and our actions. The Canada Bible League said on their website that “We are called to trust Him in all that we do, and with all our heart. This means that we are always focusing on God and placing all our concerns at His feet, as we believe that His way is better than our way. Wake up every day and put your trust in God, and He will fill each day with goodness, grace, and even more reasons to place your trust in Him.” If we trust in God half-heartedly, it ends up being no trust at all. We lose our footing and go back into the rabbit trail of doubts and anxiety.
Do not rely on your own insight
This might be hard for some of us to hear. We’re smart people we think, and our insights are pretty good. We trust the education that we’ve been given. We’re trained in critical thinking. It’s true that God has given us our brains and those brains often give us good insights.
One very helpful concept that applies here is that of intellectual humility. This is not just an ancient idea, but a trending one, one that more and more psychologists have been studying recently. It can be defined this way: understanding that we could be wrong. It doesn’t mean that we can’t have strong convictions or are wishy-washy; it just means that we know we have limitations. We know that we don’t know everything. We can always learn.
This part of the verse is reminding us that God knows things that we don’t, and God knows us better than we know ourselves.
In all your ways, acknowledge him
'All' is a pretty important word. Learning to trust God in all our ways is a lifelong process. New ways and challenges in which to acknowledge God keep popping up, especially in our culture or at different stages in life. There will always be new ways for us to grow closer to God. To 'acknowledge him', means that as we go from place to place, we acknowledge his presence with us and talk to him about everything. Acknowledging God also means submitting to him, obeying him, and listening to him.
And he shall make straight your paths
Sometimes we get lost in our Christian life. We don’t know which way to go. We get so stressed, and we think we have to figure it out ourselves. We forget that we can just relax in God and trust him to help us in the proper time. He will help us go in the right direction, even if we don’t understand what’s going on.
What does it look like to trust in God?
Trust in the Lord: Lord, you alone are worthy of our trust. You are Creator-God, the giver of every good gift. You are the same good God-- yesterday, today and forever. You will never let us down. We trust you.
Take a moment to rest in the presence of our trustworthy Lord.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart: Lord, we confess that we do not always trust you with our whole heart. We want to be certain that you will come through for us. We have back up plans in case you do not answer our prayers. And those plans keep us distracted.
What areas do you struggle to trust God with your whole heart? Perhaps it's your finances. A relationship or lack of one. Your family. Your health. Take a moment to give whatever area it is to God.
Do not rely on your own insight: Lord, your ways are not our ways and your thoughts are not our thoughts. No detail of our lives escapes you - you know our going-out and our coming-in. Help us to not rely on our own understanding but instead to tell You what we need and thank you for what You've done. We want to know the peace that only You can give.
Take a moment now to pray for what you need or want. Ask God for his wisdom in your situation. Thank him for his peace.
In all your ways acknowledge him: Heavenly Father, you are constantly thinking about us. We can talk with you at any time.
In what ways do you need to acknowledge God’s presence in your life? That He is worthy of your trust? Take a moment and ask the Lord to show you how to acknowledge Him. Maybe it's a practice you used to do but haven't for a while. Maybe you need to stop doing something and start something new. Take a moment to ask the Lord to show you.
He will make straight your paths: Thank you, Lord, for seeking us out when we are lost. Thank you for making our paths straight. Your Spirit gives us wisdom, clarity and peace. Your Word assures us that you will never leave us nor forsake us. We will see your goodness in the land of the living.
Spend some time thanking the Lord for His presence and His guidance. Amen.