Q: How can I learn to trust God more?

When I'm worried I pray to Him, but after that I still get worried. Also, I find it hard to trust others people. How do I know who God has sent for me?

There appears to be two parts to this question. First, there's the issue of trust. Pastor Kelly has written a great little post on this very issue. Read it here. Trust is a matter of character. You can only trust those who have proven themselves in the past. You can trust good friends because they have earned your trust (e.g. they keep their word; they don't cheat you; they don't gossip behind your back, etc.). You can trust God because God loves you and keeps his promises. He even suffered for you and died in your place, on the cross! If that doesn't show us a compelling picture of love, nothing will! When you pray, therefore, you need not worry because God will take care of you. He is trustworthy, good and pure.

Practically, I would suggest reading the Scripture and soak in the verses/stories that talk about trusting in God. For example, when David faced Goliath (1 Sam. 17); he put His trust in God, even though everyone laughed at him. When you read this story, it should remind you that God is trustworthy to you as he's been to thousands and millions of other individuals. I'd also recommend that you continually meditate on God's past grace in your life (e.g. past prayer requests that were answered; etc.). This will help remind you that God's character is the same. You can trust Him today and tomorrow. Lastly, when you pray - simply ask God to give you the strength, wisdom, patience and insight to trust him more. Sometimes it's difficult to be patient and trust God, and that's why we need his continual strength to do so.

As for your 2nd question ("How do I know who God has sent for me?"), God can speak to us through many different people and circumstances. Again, it comes down to the issue of trust. When you are unsure of something and you talk to another person about it, do you trust that person has your best interests in mind? Do they love God? Do they know what God desires (i.e. do they know what the Bible says about an issue)? This is not to say God cannot speak to you through non-Christians. When I was young, God spoke to me through a non-Christian friend who challenged me on my attitude. I'll never forget that day.

But when it comes to salvation and deep matters of faith/life direction/sin, I believe God speaks to us through those who know and love him. Those who truly know and love God are those who know the truth and have your best interests in mind. You can trust them for God has sent them as "witnesses" to you (see John the Baptist's example in John 1:6).

Hope this helps!

[Answered by Pastor HM]

Q: How can a person be proved trustworthy? For instance, how can you know you can trust God?

A: Well, this is a very open ended question. I will break it down since it seems like there it's a 2 Part-er question. One about the trust of your friend, and the other about trusting in God.

Trusting your Friend:
As you have heard it said before, "trust is earned". However, I think it's important to not just start off with a clean state and have each of your friend earn it. Instead, it should be that they have the trust from the beginning and really have to keep it. Similar to "innocent till proven guilty".
Trusting your friend requires you to understand their intentions. Here are some questions to ask yourself in reflection of your friend:
1. Do you find them lying to you for their own benefit?
2. Do they hang out with you when they have no one else and then ditch you when other friends come along?
3. Do they have your best interests at heart?
4. Are they willing to say the things that need to be said and sometimes point out your faults for your benefit? (Speaking the truth in love).

Something to remember is that any relationship needs to be built on trust and love. Whether it be a friend, a boyfriend, girlfriend or spouse. It also needs to be worked on...meaning that if you want a friendship to work out, communication, forgiveness, cooperation, compromise and reconciliation must also happen.


Trusting God:
Trusting God may be a little the tough one out of the two because it's not like you can see Him or hang out with Him in the way you would with a friend. However, I would like to challenge you this:
Think about the last time you really needed God. Like, the last time you went through a struggle in your life, asked Him for help...and He came through; giving you strength, wisdom, courage to get through whatever you needed to.
Now remember this verse: ⁸Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)
We have to remember that the same God that has saved us from our sins, is the same God that will help us in the future. Christ promises to remain true to us as long as put our faith into Him. He has proven trustworthy in your life at one point or another. And He promises to remain trustworthy through the entire duration of your life.

Another verse that I'd like to share with you comes from the same book, Hebrews 11:1 ¹Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. There is an element of faith that is needed to trust our God. If it was so easy and so plain for people to see, there would no persecution in the world and no one would doubt God. God reveals the truth to us, in hopes that we have the right heart and attitude to see. He has promised us blessings, and our in faith, we must trust that what we do not see now, it will come to fruition in time and through Him.


[answered by Pastor KJT]

Q: How should parents trust their children and children their parents?

This is a broad(er) question, but I'll try my best to offer some biblical help. In Scripture, trust is not simply an emotion. It is faith and belief in the OBJECT of trust. When you are able to trust someone, it means you believe in their character. You cannot, for example, trust a thief or a liar. But you can trust a person who has proven to be honest, fair and faithful. Trust is only as good as the one you put it in. It must be EARNED.

Of course, this applies to our relationship with God. When Isaiah says "I will trust the Lord and will not be afraid" (12:2), he means God is so utterly trustworthy that he does need to fear anything. God has Isaiah's good in mind, so whatever Isaiah goes through, he trusts in God.

This also applies to our relationship with our parents. How do you trust your parents? By believing in their character. Think of all the times in your past when your parents have come through for you. Think of all the sacrifices your parents haven made for you. When you are frustrated or angry at your parents, step back and know that your parents ultimately have your best interests in mind.

That being said, trusting a person is not easy. This includes your parents. Your parents are not perfect. They will make mistakes. They are sinners. That is why ultimately you must trust God first before trusting your parents. Know that God - unlike your earthly father - is perfect. He always has your goodness in mind. He allows things to happen to you to build you up. He will never abandon or leave you.

Consider what Jesus said in Matthew 7:9-11 (ESV):

Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Part of trusting in God means trusting that he gave you...your parents! Even with all their weaknesses and bad habits, they ARE your parents, and God instructs us to honour and obey them (Deut. 5:16). And honouring and obeying your parents means to trust them - even if you do not agree with them at times.

Hope this helps. In terms parents trusting their children, I believe the same principle applies. Children must earn the trust of their parents. They must prove their character is one of honesty, faithfulness and responsibility. Parents must also trust in God, and believe that God gave them their children as a gift. Ephesians 6:4 says, "Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord." This means fathers should not dominate or act harshly toward their children. Parents too must put trust in the children, bringing them up gently and correcting them lovingly when they are wrong. Children should have opportunities to prove themselves and to earn the trust of their parents.

[Answered by Pastor HM, who is learning to trust, but more importantly, learning to be trustworthy]