“I’m not sure what to do.”

We’ve all been there.  In all likelihood, we’ll be there again.  We get into a situation and we’re stuck.  Really stuck—rock and a hard place kind of stuck.

It’s in those moments where trusting God becomes a little perilous.  We’re afraid of making the wrong decision.  But I contend: it’s in these moments the Lord is teaching you something powerful.

We’re entering into week two of the answer to the question “How do you trust God?”.  This was the result of a survey I ran for four weeks about what to study after we finished our dive into Philippians.

Although there are many passages in Scripture offering us an answer to this question, we’re looking at Proverbs 3:5-6 for our encouragement to trust the Lord.

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV

Last week, we discussed the first part of this passage and how it helps us trust God.  Today, we zoom in on the Scripture’s counsel of trusting “with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” (verse 5).

How much of our heart are we told to trust the Lord with?  ALL.  Something powerful in that word.  All.  Every single bit.  Completely.  Wholly.  In Totality.

The Hebrew word (Hebrew is the original language of most of the Old Testament) for “heart” goes way beyond our emotions.  It’s also our intellect and our will.

This means when we run to the Lord (see last week), it’s a pursuit encompassing our emotions, intellects, wills, and essence.

No wonder Scripture then immediately tells us to not lean on our own understanding (verse 5b): if we’re pouring everything into trusting the Lord, then why in the world would we?!?  Compared to the wisdom the Lord offers us, what could we possibly offer to our equation?

Humans once thought the Earth was flat.  We once thought cells were the smallest things in existence.  We once thought black holes didn’t exist and that we were the center of the universe.

We humans are always learning things—that’s a good thing—but have you ever learned that God hasn’t ever “learned” anything?  It doesn’t mean He doesn’t think, but there is nothing the Lord needs to learn.  The Lord never has a revelation or a new thought because He already knows it all.

That’s a wonderful comfort to know that we can run to our refuge and our refuge is an all-knowing, all-powerful King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

This is the secret the Psalmist understands in Psalm 63:3–4 (NIV) “Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.  I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.”

One of my mentors, Dr. David Seifert, would often say, “Difficult circumstances can be a stepping stone instead of a stumbling block.”  So, if you’re stuck and you’re not sure what to do, then use that as a stepping stone to give all of yourself to Him.

Then in doing so, you’ll find you’ll be trusting the Lord with everything you have and learning from His endless supply of wisdom.