Trust in the Lord With All Your Heart
by Anne Lawrence
You may well have read these verses many times before, and even held on to them. Recently I received a fresh understanding of them. We’re encouraged here to trust in the Lord with all of our hearts. That’s quite a challenge for most of us. We’re happy to trust Him with part of our hearts, but our whole heart is a different matter. Often we hold parts of our heart back from the Lord. Our hearts can have lots of compartments. Some we let Him into, but others we don’t. We don’t let Him into the parts which feel shame or guilt, which contain pain we can’t face, which have memories we’ve pushed away, where we’re struggling with sin, and which contain loneliness, disappointment, or despair.
We hold ourselves back from the Lord. Yet the verse tells us to trust the Lord with all of our hearts. That means all of our being, all of our identity; submitting every part of
our lives to him - the good, the bad, the pain, the difficulties – all of us. If we don’t let Him into every part of our lives we won’t be able to trust Him with every part of our hearts. But it’s only in bringing all those parts to Him that we can truly be in union
with Him, and receive healing and restoration. Trust is a big thing, but it’s the only way to get beyond our humanity and into the full life that He has for us.
The verse goes on to tell us not to lean on our own understanding; not to try and work it out with our mind. Our mind is our soul, which is trying to rationalise and take over, coming up with solutions to our problems. Rather we’re told to acknowledge Him; to submit to Him and His ways; to His path and direction, the guidance of His word, and His Holy Spirit directing us and revealing His ways to us.
The solution is not us working it out with our minds, but trusting Him to make a way through; trusting Him to provide a solution, an answer. And this is how the way will become clear before us. He’ll direct us and make our paths straight. Trust is a big thing and we don’t trust someone we don’t know. Many of us think we know God, but do we really know Him, or are we seeing Him through the filters of life’s experiences. Do we think things like: ‘Well God wouldn’t answer my prayers because He’s too busy’, or ‘I’m not important enough’ (maybe our earthly father was very busy and made us
feel unimportant)? But that’s not Father God’s heart towards us. As we really know God, we can trust Him, because we get to know His character. It’s loving, faithful, and slow to anger. It’s a heart to restore us and ring us into relationship with Him.
So we could say, ‘Trust in the Lord with every part of your heart, and don’t try to work it out with your own mind or understanding. Submit everything to the Lord and He’ll make a way through, in every situation.
Prayer: Lord, I thank You that You’re willing to work with me and make a way through in my life and circumstances. I’m sorry that I’ve held parts of myself back from You. Please forgive me. I choose to offer the whole of my heart to You. Please help me to trust You, to lean on You and to follow You. In the name of Jesus, Amen.
Anne Lawrence joined the team at Ellel Grange in 2010 and is the Deputy Centre Director. She is married to Paul, Centre Director. Anne previously worked in education. Her last post was CEO of a College in Dublin. She has written courses, syllabi and a book for the English for Work series published by Longman. She has a heart for the broken and a passion to see people set free and released into more of what the Lord has for them. She loves to teach, listen, worship and create things.
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