What it really means to trust God

18 years ago

My baccalaureate service was over 18 years ago. I don’t remember what was said at it.

Jeff Eaton was the pastor who spoke, and I am sure it was powerful.

I know as I sat there that I had big plans, hopes, and aspirations for my life after that day.

And as I stand here 18 years later, I can say with confidence that I had no clue!

And as you sit here today, you likely have plan, hopes, dreams, and aspirations for your life and I encourage you to dream big

But as we have all experienced in the last several months, those plans and dreams do not always turn out how we would want them.

You don’t deserve what you have.

None of you expected when this school year started to be sitting here in August, having not been at school since March, and now facing starting your next stage in life in the middle of a pandemic that has everything in flux.

But let me speak a warning to you that I believe is the reason many people struggle to follow the Lord or even believe in Him.

There is a grave danger in believing God didn’t give you something that you deserve.

“I worked my butt off for 4 years and didn’t get to graduate like I should have.”

“I didn’t get to finish my season, be with my friends...”

“And now college is going to be weird, things are getting cancelled...”

In the scheme of life, these aren’t huge things (though they are important), but there is this temptation to entertain the idea that “I didn’t get what I deserved” or “I didn’t get what was owed to me.”

There is an underlying belief that God has withheld something from us that He was obligated to give, and therein lies the danger.

Here’s the thing:

We cannot hold God to promises He never made.

The life of Joseph is a powerful example of this very truth.

You guys likely know the story:

A young, 17 year old boy who is loved by his father and hated by his jealous brothers, has a dream that he is going to be important and will rule over his family.

He has dreams, aspirations, hopes, and plans.

But his jealous brothers sell him into slavery into the house of Potiphar.

And though things go well there, Potiphar’s wife takes a liking to Joseph and tries to sleep with him.

Even though he refuses and acts honorably, the wife accuses him of trying to rape her and Joseph is thrown into prison.

Joseph spends 12 years in prison and at the age of 30 is likely thinks “God what the heck were you trying to tell me at 17 that I must have really misinterpreted.”

But then 2 guys who he had been with in prison tell Pharaoh, king of Egypt, that Joseph can interpret his dreams and all of a sudden Joseph is put in this important and influential position.

So around 40 years old, as a powerful figure in the Egyptian government, Joseph encounters the very brothers that sent him into slavery and landed him in prison.

And once they realize who he is, fear overcomes them as they think Joseph is going to have them killed in retribution.

But instead one of the most powerful and transformative verses in the bible is spoken.

Genesis 50:20 ESV

20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.

Now you might be thinking “What does that have to do with me?”

What Joseph communicates in that statement is an understanding of trust in God that I for one have not yet grasped.

He understood that God never promised him he would always be safe, secure, and satisfied with his lot in life.

He understood that God never promised him that he would be loved, accepted, and treated fairly.

He understood that God never promised him good health, a great education, a great career, a great marriage, 2.5 kids, a nice house, a Florida vacation every summer, and all the things a good American ought to have.

And He hasn’t promised you those things either.

I am not saying you might not get those things, or that they are sinful to desires.

But if we hold God to a list of promises He never made we are going to end up one of two ways:

Bitter- mad at God because He didn’t give us everything we thought we deserved

Or bratty- Ungrateful to God for the things we have that are only given to us through His grace.

James 1:17 ESV

17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Holding God to promise He never made causes us to miss out on the blessing of the promises He has Made

Here are 3 from Philippians 4 that I want to leave you with that I pray each and every one of you will embrace.

Philippians 4:4–7 ESV

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

1) Unwavering Joy

“Rejoice always” is a command rooted in a reality.

Here is the reality: our joy is not dependent on our circumstances.

Rather it is rooted in the Our never changing, always faithful, loving, caring, and all-powerful God.

Joy is found in God’s plan to make us into who He desires us to be for our good and His glory.

Romans 8:28–29 ESV

28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

You can’t understand 28 unless you hear the words of 29.

All things work together for good for those called to His purposes and in order that they may be conformed to look more like Jesus.

So yeah, things aren’t going to be easy, you will face many more trials, but rejoice because God has a reason, and it is a good one.

2) Everlasting Hope

“Pray about EVERYTHING” means to continually direct your gaze toward the Lord and cast your cares on Him, because

He knows you (1 Cor. 8:3)

He cares for you (1 Pet 5:7)

Hope is rooted in confidence that God is listening, He has not left you, and He is working, even when we don’t see it.

3) Indescribable Peace

This is what we all really want.

Not peace as in the absence of conflict, but as the absence of dysfunction and chaos. (that is what it really means)

“The peace of GOD” is a divine peace, not a human/worldly peace.

So it is also not circumstantial. It isn’t something we can earn, manufacture, purchase, or find in something or someone.

It is a gift, given by God to those who find rest in the power, purpose, and providential care of God.

Jim and Elizabeth Elliot

I want to end with a story.

Jim Elliot was a missionary in Ecuador along with his wife Elizabeth.

He was a bright and talented 28 year old, only married for a little over 2 years, with a young daughter,

But he felt a deep call from the Lord to go to a remote people group in the jungles of Ecuador to share the Gospel with them.

On January 8th, 1956, he and 4 other missionaries were killed by the tribe they were intending to share Christ with.

Many said it was a waste of life, that they were foolish to do such a thing.

But God never promised Jim Elliot that life would be easy, safe, or comfortable.

He didn’t promise Elizabeth a long and happy marriage.

She wrote this in regards to God’s care and faithfulness

“I'm convinced that there is nothing that can happen to me in this life—which is not precisely designed by a sovereign Lord to give me the opportunity to learn to know Him.”

“Our future may look fearfully intimidating—yet we can look up to the Engineer of the Universe, confident that nothing escapes His attention or slips out of the control of those strong hands.”