I
am repeatedly baffled at what we humans will trust.
We
like to echo the phrase “in God we trust”
but the very paper this phrase is printed on reveals something we trust more.
We
struggle to trust other humans because at some time or another someone has
disappointed us, betrayed us, belittled us, used or abused us. Determined not
to be duped again, our self-protective walls grow high and limit the
possibility of real, trust-based relationships.
We
do, however, trust the fascination of technology that allows us to connect with
the world from the safety of our isolated fortresses. We trust information that
is often biased and rooted in partial truth. We trust our personal information
and credit history to vendors who would sell us the world. We trust our secret
thoughts and private moments to public walls where we can be encouraged, challenged,
ridiculed, pursued or bullied. We trust our hearts to services that promise to
find the right life partner for us. We trust our need for deep friendship to a
network of contacts that can easily “like” or “unlike” us. We trust our sense
of direction to an annoying voice that tells us where to go. We trust our lives
to distracted driving practices believing that response to a text message is
more urgent than human safety.
Before
you assume that I am “anti-technology” let me assure you that is not the case.
Technology is simultaneously wonderful, amazing, and mind-blowing in what it is
able to do now, and will be able to do in the future. It has facilitated great
advancements in the human condition and story. But technology remains neutral.
It has no capacity to trust or distrust. Only humans have that ability.
How
can we say we trust God when many of our decisions and actions betray our
loyalty and prove that we are prone to trust lesser things?
One
answer: We dissect our words and actions by redefining the word “believe”. In
the Kingdom of God, “trust” or “faith” is the essence of belief. To say that you believe someone is to pledge your
unwavering trust in him for every dimension of life.
Somewhere
along the way we discovered that it is easier to believe in something rather than implicitly trust someone. So we reduced our understanding of “belief” to verbal consent or agreement
with certain truth statements about God. This redefining of “belief” also redefined our mission as
people of God. If we could get someone to verbally consent to their depravity
as a human and admit their need for God’s gracious love, then we could declare
them a believer and our efforts
successful. Consequently the world is full of growing numbers of God believers who have never been
challenged to fully trust in God.
I
think the 21st century church’s mission must recapture the essence
of God’s vision for the world –to reconnect people to people, people to the
created world, and people to the spirit and heart of God.
Trust,
belief, faith, whatever you call it, is the mortar that holds us and God’s vision
together. We have to start there.
From
the Ancient Text…Proverbs 3:4-7 MSG
Trust God from the
bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen
for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will
keep you on track. Don’t assume that you know it all. Run to God! Run from
evil! Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life!
Randy
Bargerstock –Lead Pastor
No comments:
Post a Comment