Should I jump?
Does this seem familiar? A child stands on a wall and his father stands in front of her. The child looks at the father, and when the father calls her, she jumps into his arms with screams of delight. At that moment, the child trusts that the father is there and there is no doubt that he can and will catch her. There is nothing more exciting for the child at that moment than to jump into the arms of the father.
Only a child who fully trusts her father jumps. I believe that this is how God imagines his relationship with me! Do I see God as the loving Father who gives me his full attention and who enjoys it when I jump, when he stands there with open arms and calls? Do I understand that he calls me only when he knows that I can do it?
I’d like to compare the jumping of children with stepping out of my comfort zone, where life is so comfortable. God will always draw me out from my hiding place and ask me to do something that makes me insecure and where I don’t know exactly what I’m doing. When he does that, he is there to help me! No matter what area of my life is concerned, I learn – also in my trust in God. How great is the joy when I realize that this new experience wasn’t so terrible and that I have achieved something that I didn’t think I could do before.
My soul waits calmly for God alone. My salvation comes from him.
He alone is my rock and my savior—my stronghold. I cannot be severely shaken. Psalm 62: 1-2 (GW)
Do I believe this? Not only as hope for the future, but now, in the middle of life? Is my God trustworthy? Or is he a God who punishes me with illness and suffering when I misbehave? No, definitely not! There are many diseases, difficulties and sufferings around us, but they are not from God! I see in the life and actions of Jesus, that God is merciful and benevolent. Jesus helped and healed wherever he went. He encouraged people and showed them how God really is.
God wants to have heaven on earth and has taught us in the “Lord’s Prayer” to pray for it:
This is how you should pray. ‘Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored. May your kingdom come. May what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven.’
Matth. 6, 9-10 (NIRV)
There is neither sickness nor pain in heaven! And so God doesn’t want it on earth either!
Because God is for us and wants to use all things for our good, I can trust him! I don’t need to hold the strings of my life tightly, but may give them to him and be sure that he guides me well and safely. I may give up control and open my hands and relax. I can confidently let go and look forward to what he puts in front of me. The one condition is that I will look to him. He has wisdom available for us for every situation. I grow by going step by step with him. In the process, my trust grows more and more.
This also means that my trust is not passive (in the sense of: He will fix it), but that I do step by step actively and joyfully. Even if I feel insecure outside of my comfort zone, I know that I have a great daddy who gives me security and wants to give me the best life I can have!
Or to come back to the picture with the little child: I don’t want my child to get stuck in its development. I want her to mature from a toddler to a school child and as a school child to act responsibly in doing what she has already learned. Depending on the stage of development, I will support my child where I can, but I also expect it to make her own decisions and take her own steps. And I like it when she acts according to my values, asks me when she is insecure and tells me what she experiences.
What do I do if I didn’t have a trustworthy father and have trouble with trust? Then I ask God to show me what he’s like. I read the Bible and see what Jesus did. He has set an example of how God thinks and acts. And I can practice small steps and I can start to trust. God has no problem with small beginnings. I see in his creation that he has tremendous patience with growth processes!
What does it look like in practice when I trust God? It starts with the fact that I know that I am valuable and that God has plans for me. I maintain a close relationship with God and turn to Him when I’m in tough situations. He shows me that He is with me and will “navigate” me through the difficulties. I believe that God has it under control and will help me to get out of this mess safely. I believe that the bad will lead to something good. I will live more relaxed and joyfully, the carousel of worries will lose its power. Trust leads to hope and hope leads to joy!
Do I dare? Do you dare? Let us dare to leave our comfort zone! Let us trust his voice and jump in the belief that he is good!
