Learning to Trust God

It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes. – Psalm 118:8-9

One important lesson the first four chapters of Deuteronomy teach us is that we don’t learn to trust God all at once. Trust, like righteous obedience, is learned as we walk with Him through the ordinary circumstances of life. The Israelites had seen God’s faithfulness firsthand, yet when they faced the challenges of entering the Promised Land, they let fear overcome faith. Their problem was not a lack of evidence of God’s faithfulness but a failure to trust what they already knew about Him. We have the same challenges in our daily lives. As He did with the Israelites over 40 years, God teaches us to trust Him as we repeatedly act on His promises. 

We learn to trust God by remembering His past faithfulness, especially when present circumstances make us afraid. We learn by taking the next step of obedience, even when we cannot see how everything will work out. We learn by bringing our fears and uncertainties to the Lord in prayer, rather than letting them control our decisions. And we learn by obeying God’s Word even when obedience is costly or inconvenient, trusting that His wisdom is better than our own. 

The story of Israel’s wilderness journey mirrors our own stories of spiritual growth, revealing that God is not merely interested in getting us to a destination. Instead, he is forming us into a people who know and trust Him. Sometimes the circumstances we would rather escape are the very circumstances God uses to teach us dependence upon Him. When we look back, we can often see ways God has provided, protected, corrected, and guided us that we could not recognize at the time, which confirms this reality: trust grows through practice. Each act of faithful obedience becomes another lesson in God’s goodness and faithfulness. How can you be more obedient today than you were yesterday? 

Suggested Scripture Readings

• Psalm 37:1-11
• James 1:2–15

Reflection Questions

1. What past evidence of God’s faithfulness can you remember when you are tempted to fear or doubt Him?
2. What is one specific area in which God is calling you to trust Him and take a step of obedience?