Unknown Future And The All-Known 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

Corrie ten Boom, who was honored by Israel by naming her ‘Righteous among the Nations’ said, “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”

She and her family members helped many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust during World war 11 by hiding them in her home. Later all of them were arrested and sent to the Ravensbruck concentration camp. She wrote a famous book in her later years called ‘the Hiding place’ in which she explains how she found hope while in the concentration camp. She endured horrible evil. She had to see her own family die in the prison camp. In the midst of all, she revealed the secret of unshakable trust in the goodness of the Lord that she became the radiance of light and hope for many in the years followed. Her life history still motivates many to trust in God and keep the peace, hope, and quietness in the tragedies of life.

It appears God had to warn us frequently in the Bible about the foolishness and danger of trusting man or princes, in contrast to trusting Him for all of our needs. God wants us to trust Him on an ongoing basis for the small and significant needs of our lives. Do you remember Jesus, when He taught disciples how to pray, taught them to pray to the Father in heaven for our daily bread (means daily food), the forgiveness of debts and sins, and protection from temptation and the evil one? (Matthew 6:9-13). Beloved, you see, we will be far better off by placing our trust in the LORD. The LORD is the one who is willing and capable of meeting all our needs- physical, spiritual, mental, financial, relational, health and you name it all.

Bible says in Jeremiah 17:5-6, “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength.” It says there that if we trust the man and do not trust God, our hearts may turn away from the loving LORD. The result is we would become like a shrub in the desert and shall not see any good outcome. A man who trusts in the man and not God will end dwelling in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited land. Sure I do not want to live in the parched areas of the wilderness or uninhabited land, do you? However, if Lord is our trust and refuge, He makes us lie down in green pastures. He leads us beside quiet waters, and he refreshes our soul on an ongoing basis. He prepares a table for us in the presence of our enemies, and our cup will overflow all the days of our life. (Psalm 23). Sure, it is far, far better to trust in the LORD than to trust in man or princes, don’t you agree?

I remember my boyhood days when I learned the bicycle ride. It is a practice, learned experience, or skill. However, do you know once you got the bicycle balance, you will never lose the balance? Even when you get old, you can still ride a bicycle if you are healthy to ride. Trusting the Lord through our life’s good and bad experiences is also a learned experience, isn’t it? In 1st Timothy 4:7, Paul encouraged Timothy to train for Godliness because while physical exercise and training is of some value for this life, training or practicing Godliness holds promise for the present life and also for life to come.

Our daily insight today is “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.” The more we get advanced in our age, we would appreciate this eternal truth of the Bible. King David wrote this Psalm. David shared his life experience in these verses. He was betrayed and chased by his enemies. He had to live in caves and wilderness because of the jealousy of the then king. He had to run away even from his own palace house because of the rebelliousness of his son. Through it all, he learned a great lesson, and that is this – people around us are going to fail us. But God will never fail us. Because David trusted God, God lifted him in His due time. God groomed a shepherd boy, who fully trusted God, to become the greatest king of the nation Israel. The good LORD never failed David in all his dark and painful experiences. Beloved, He will do the same for you and me, don’t you agree? Yes, He will do the same because He is the same yesterday, and today and forever.

Got a moment for today’s prayer? “Father in heaven, help me to trust in you rather than trusting in man or princes. Like David, Corrie ten Boom, and many others, I can trust you fully. I do trust you, Lord. I know you sent your Son, Jesus Christ to save me. He died and rose again for me. I believe and accept Jesus as my savior and Lord. In Christ’s name, I pray. Amen.”