Who Do I Trust?
I thought trusting someone was based on whether someone could keep our secrets or would gossip them further. I thought that if we were only strong and confident in ourselves, we should not be afraid of who tells what about us. I thought that trust was a value to cultivate and that not trusting people was a sin, wrong. But I am learning quickly, and I will tell you what I learned.
Children and young animals trust. When I take her to the store, my young dog snuggles with everyone she sees. The trust of young creatures is not based on who will tell on them but based on whether they are safe with someone the way they are. Whether they are excepted the way, they are. Trust, therefore, by nature, has little to do with secrets, and it has more to do with who will value us and accept us despite our shortcomings and mistakes.
Based on this, I would most likely trust someone whom I know is likely to share my secrets and stories with others but loves and accepts me despite my shortcomings.
Why can God be trusted then? Well, we trust God not because he keeps our secrets. Sure, God doesn’t gossip. Perhaps God tells some angels about us, but he does not tell his most favorite people on earth the latest and greatest gossip. But that is not why we trust God. We trust God because God loves and accepts us despite who we are. We trust God because we see God love Mary deeply while the demons in her make her curse his face. We trust God because we see him touch untouchables. We trust God because we see Jesus hanging on the cross and dying for us.
Now, as Christians, many of us trust so-called “great theologians” or great influencers. Religious people are eloquent in what they say and popular in what they do. And when these prominent Christians do not live up to the trust we give them, we can get so deeply hurt that we leave our faith altogether. But we should not trust people simply because they are great men or women of God in our eyes. Jesus did not do this. The Bible says that Jesus did not entrust himself to certain people, not because they blabbed about him but because he knew what was in their hearts.
So, who do we trust? We should not trust our minister simply because he is a great man of God in our eyes. We must trust him because we trust that he has learned to love as Jesus loves. And very often, the small, broken, and little people who have gone through hardship in life have learned to love. Imperfect people have faults but have learned through those faults the grace, mercy, and love of God.
So, what lessons did I learn?
First, I don’t think I’ll tell people again that not trusting is wrong. Some people have never had people who treated them like Jesus treats people. How can we expect these people to be trusting? Yes, we need to be trustworthy to them so that they can heal from their wounds and learn to trust again.
Second, in life, let’s not look to great people for our confidence and trust. Let’s look at the people to whom God gave his grace and mercy. These people may not be perfect, but they might understand the heart of God in a way the big and great ones do not.
Let’s be like kids. Let’s trust like kids. And by that, change the world a story, a time, and a reassessment of whom we trust. One Jesus-like person at a time.