Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. 

Proverbs 3:5, 6

I want to let this passage of Scripture enter the deep places of my being.  It begins with a difficult plea for people like me. Trust in the LORD.  That hits the nail on the head, I might say.  My tendency is to trust many things, like my determination, my Christian history, my family, my denominations and the list goes on.  This word from God clears all other “trusts” and encourages me to trust in the Lord!  That is like a sharp knife that cuts cleanly.  I hear the word in my ears, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart.”

All my heart?  Really?  That is the basis of all that follows.  The word of God warns us against placing our own understanding as important.  Of course we must use the intelligence that God has given me to do what is necessary, deny any hope in anything but God himself, and nothing else. What is more intelligent than that?

This is not just some mental jargon.  It is at the heart of being a follower of the Lord.  I means lifting up the Lord as my one and only hope. That means that I will obey the commands of the One who called me to follow Him!   He knows how hopeless we human beings are, so He himself becomes our strength and hope!  Praise Him always and forever and ever!