I absolutely love learning to trust God. Trusting God silences my prickly, agitating, selfish, complaining, upsetting and frantic flesh.
When I begin to feel unrest rising in me, I know my flesh is wanting to usurp the Spirit living in me. My flesh wants to take back control.
The sword of the Spirit (Jesus, God’s Word) can put to death the flesh.
7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.
Psalm 37:7-9
And they that are Christ’s (this is the ultimate goal, the dwelling place of the Most High) have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Galatians 5:24
14 But the natural man (the flesh) receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
1 Corinthians 2:14
For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
Romans 8:5
Our flesh has a very hard time receiving, believing and doing God’s Word. It’s hard-hearted. It does not want to give up easily and fights the Spirit working in us. It’s demanding, impatient and wants its way. Life in the Spirit is different.
Doing things in the power of the flesh (striving in the flesh) will wear us out and make us weary. This is why God says to crucify the flesh and to learn His ways that give us His new Life.
I didn’t know how to trust God. I had to learn to do so. It took a lot of lessons…Still learning. ☺ But I can honestly say that learning to trust God gets easier and, along the way, you grow in patience which is a really good thing. To wait on God – to trust God – is invaluable and will enable you to enter His rest. His rest is so beautiful and amazing, and I know there is so much more resting ahead. Life lived by the Spirit of God is such a different life than the life lived without knowing how to trust God, the life lived in the flesh.
Is God in control? Yes. And the more I learn that He is in control, the more I yield to the Comforter – the Spirit – and the more I rest.
Thanking and praising God in all things (Ephesians 5:20),
Mark
Note: While we may not agree with everything a particular church or Christian group teaches or believes, there are times when we can be blessed by something outside the realm of our current understanding of God.