Anyone who earns our trust does so by being trustworthy, and we know they are trustworthy based on the consistency of their words and actions. We discover this consistency through relationship, interacting with each other in daily living. We must spend time with people to determine their trustworthiness.

Developing trust in anyone requires spending time with them, and it’s no different with learning to trust God. Trusting God involves inviting him to interact with us and giving him opportunity to show that he is trustworthy.

“If we want two good indications of how much we are really trusting God, we should pay attention to our levels of anxiety and anger when things don’t go our way and to the steadiness of our stream of thanksgiving, whatever the circumstances.” (God Hunger: Meditations for a Life of Longing)

Trusting in God means believing in his truth, his ability, and his strength. Instead of reacting with anxiety and anger, we focus on what God’s word says and what he has done for us already. In addition to establishing a relationship with God through regular Bible study, a habit of thanksgiving also increases our trust in God.

Why Should I Trust God?

The more time you spend with God, the more you realize that you can trust him. You learn that he is worthy of your trust because:

  1. He does what he says he’ll do. (Numbers 23:19; Psalm 89:34)
  2. He has the power to do what he says he’ll do. (Isaiah 14:24)
  3. What he says he’ll do is always for my good. (Romans 8:28)

To know God more is to trust him more and to better understand why you can always trust him.

God is Trustworthy

God has proven Himself trustworthy. We see evidence of his trustworthiness in scripture, in history, and in the testimony of those who know him.

“Praise be to the LORD, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses.” (1 Kings 8:56)

The more we experience God’s grace, faithfulness, and goodness, the more we trust him. That experience requires interacting with him. It requires letting him into the details of our lives.

“For the LORD is good, and His loving devotion endures forever; His faithfulness continues to all generations.” (Psalm 100:5)

“LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago.” (Isaiah 25:1)

What’s the Alternative?

The alternative to completely trusting in God is reliance upon ourselves or other people, beings that are sinful, unpredictable, and unreliable. It’s trusting in those who have limited wisdom, often make bad choices, and are easily swayed by emotion.

God, on the other hand, is all-wise, all-knowing, all-powerful, gracious, merciful, loving, and intends only our good. He consistently operates within his character, which you learn by spending time with him.

Why Don’t We Trust God?

We fail to trust God when we don’t know him well enough or when we take our focus off what we do know about him. We don’t usually trust strangers, and trust easily fades when we don’t spend time with someone.

Consider my husband and me, for example. We’ve been married a long time, and we spend a lot of time together. Life often gets busy, though, and we get distracted by other commitments and obligations. When these seasons happen, my mind more easily doubts the strength of our relationship. Spending time together – not just being in the same room but interacting and focusing – always reestablishes the trust a lifetime together has built.

Trusting God works the same way. Spending time with him, through his word and in prayerful discussion, reestablishes and furthers our trust – our faith – in him.

“Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17)

“The beginning, progress, and strength of faith is by hearing. But it is only hearing the word as the word of God that will strengthen faith.” (Matthew Henry)

To know God is to trust God and to realize that he alone is completely trustworthy. Spend time with him – consistently – and you will trust him more. Let your levels of anxiety, emotions, and thanksgiving be indicators of where that trust level lies.