Church Matters
Part 1
“Cay You Trust Him With That?”

Ps 25: 4-5 “Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. 5 Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.”
What a wonderful psalm about God’s guidance!
Notice David’s requests: Show me, teach me, guide me.
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In another psalm, God speaks directly to David with a promise of guidance:
Ps. 32:8 “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with my loving eye on you.”
Few in Scripture depended on God’s guidance like David due to his being constantly stalked by Saul for ten long years.
Over and over again God’s guidance saved his life from Saul’s efforts to kill him.
So we find him repeatedly writing about and praising God for His guidance:
Ps.37:23 “The steps of good men are directed by the Lord. He delights in each step they take.”
Ps. 48:14 “For this great God is our God forever and ever. He will be our guide until we die.”
Ps. 73:24 “You will keep on guiding me all my life with your wisdom and counsel, and afterwards receive me into the glories of heaven!”
—And then one of my favorite verses on guidance is from the prophet Isaiah:
“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’”—30:21
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All through Scripture we see God guiding His people.
—He led Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees on over a thousand mile journey to Canaan.
—He led Moses and the children of Israel through the Red Sea, through the great wilderness, and into the Promised Land. The Bible says,
“By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light,”—Exodus 13:21
—In a time of national judgment and famine, God led Elijah to the safety of the Brook Cherith where He provided him daily meals.
God repeatedly told His people that He would be their guide:
Isaiah 48:17 “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow.”
Now, with that in mind, one thing I’ve noticed in Scripture is that—those who were truly committed to Him made it a lifelong practice to “inquire of the Lord” for His guidance and instruction.
It was King David’s habit to “inquire of the Lord” before a battle.
For example, when the Amalekites had invaded Ziklag and kidnapped his wives and children and those of his men, Scripture says:
“Then David inquired of the LORD, “Should I chase after this band of raiders? Will I catch them?” And the LORD told him, “Yes, go after them. You will surely recover everything that was taken from you!”—1 Sam 30:8
And it happened just as God said!
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So for the true, born again child of God it is a normal part of life to seek and walk in God’s guidance.
But you may ask, “Well then, how can I be sure God is guiding me?
How can I best position myself for God’s guidance?
How can I know that God is directing my steps in making major decisions?
One answer is found in:
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own insight or understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths, making them straight and smooth, and [removing obstacles that block your way].”
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So according to these verses, guidance begins with:
I. Trusting in the Lord with all your heart
Notice He didn’t say, “trust the Lord.”
He said, “trust IN the Lord.”
We’re to trust IN God’s loyal, faithful, just, flawless, and loving character.
I trust IN the Person, IN the character of Almighty God, the God of all creation!
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If you don’t trust IN Him you will never trust Him with:
THAT thing you so fear letting go of,
or with THAT major decision,
or THAT pathway before you,
or THAT step of faith you’re praying about taking
Whatever THAT is that I’m hesitant to trust Him with, I will never trust TO Him unless I first trust IN him!
So the question becomes—can He be trusted to guide us as His children?
Isn’t it funny, we trust Him to guide us all the way to heaven but don’t trust Him to guide us here and now!
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I think part of the problem is that trust has become a real issue in our culture.
It’s become harder and harder to do because people so often break our trust!
Shaking hands over a business deal has been replaced with a fleet of lawyers and written contracts to be sure we do what we promise.
Saying “I do” at the altar often becomes “I don’t.”
Our politicians make empty promises all the time just to get elected, and never follow through.
One commentator recently wrote, “Levels of trust in this country—in our institutions, in our politics, and in one another—are in precipitous decline. And when trust collapses, nations fail.”
But there is one we can trust without fear of disappointment!
The Bible assures us God is not a man that he can lie!
It says, “Trust IN the Lord with ALL your heart…”
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So:
Do you trust in the POWER of God to deliver you?
Do you trust in the HAND of God to provide for you?
Do you trust in the HEART of God to care about you?
Do you trust in the COUNSEL of God to advise you?
Do you trust in the EYE of God to guide you?
Do you trust in the WISDOM of God to instruct you.
Do you trust in the PROMISES of God to come through for you?
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The fact is that it’s easier to have FAITH than to TRUST!
ILLUS: Imagine with me a tightrope stretched over a quarter of a mile across the raging river called Niagara Falls.
Then imagine the thundering sound of the pounding water drowning out all other sounds as a man steps onto the rope and walks across!
This daredevil feat was actually performed by Charles Blondin in the summer of 1859.
He walked 160 feet above the falls several times back and forth between Canada and the United States as huge crowds on both sides looked on in shock and awe.
One time he crossed in a sack, once on stilts, another time on a bicycle, and once he even carried a stove and cooked an omelet!
On July 15, Blondin walked backward across the tightrope pushing a wheelbarrow.

After pushing a wheelbarrow across he asked for some audience participation.
The crowds had watched and “Ooooohed” and “Aaaaahed!”
He had proven that he could do it; there was no doubt.
But now he was asking for a volunteer to get into the wheelbarrow and take a ride across the Falls with him!
He asked his audience, “Do you believe I can carry a person across in this wheelbarrow?”
Of course the crowd shouted that yes, they believed!
Then Blondin posed the question—”Who will get in the wheelbarrow?’
No one did.
It was one thing to believe he COULD get you there, and another to believe he WOULD get you there.
The first took faith, the second took trust!
We’re called to not just believe God can, but to trust He will!
So today I want to begin this series on Living Under God’s Guidance with a simple message on TRUST.
Do you TRUST Him to the place you can trust Him with THAT, whatever THAT is?