Those who know you, Lord, will trust you; you do not abandon anyone who comes to you. Psalm 9: 10

If we’re afraid to trust ourselves and our loved ones to God’s care, maybe we don’t know him well enough. Painful circumstances don’t mean God has abandoned us.

Seeing past misfortune and trusting God takes knowing God. Unfortunately, English only has one word for “know”. Other languages have two. For example, in Spanish, the word saber means to know intellectually while the word conocer means to know by direct encounter, to be familiar with.  I suspect knowing the Lord enough to trust him takes more than knowing facts about God. When push comes to shove, intellectual knowledge can’t always reach the heart levels where real life often hits us. Getting to know the Lord on this more personal level involves the same things that go into developing a relationship with another person: spending time together, sharing our thoughts and feelings, and listening to them. Spending time in prayer is one way to get to know the Lord better, both by pouring out our hearts to Him and by reading His word and listening for what it might be saying to us personally.

Becoming familiar with people who have endured calamity and not abandoned their faith, whether Biblical figures or modern day heroes, gives us a hope that we, too, can trust God when calamity is at our door. Their examples give us a glimpse of how to put that trust into action.

Prayer: Lord, help me know you better and trust you more.

Reflection for sharing:  What can I do today, to get to know the Lord a little better?