I read a phrase the other day and I’ve been ruminating ever since – profound trust. Not the kind of trust where my lips say I do but my mind says I don’t. Something more, something deeper, something well, uh…profound.
I began digging into those words. Starting with profound. The dictionary defines profound as “penetrating or entering deeply into subjects of thought or understanding.” I’m definitely an overthinker, but I’m not sure that’s the same thing. It goes on to say “having deep insight or understanding.” Ok. I can say I occasionally have the rogue deep thought. How about this one, “being or going far beneath what is superficial, external or obvious”? Hmmm. Or, maybe this one, “Of deep meaning; of great and broadly inclusive significance.” Or, even “pervasive or intense, extending, situated, or originating far down, or far beneath the surface.”
Profound trust. A kind of trust that doesn’t just skim the surface. That deep to the bone kind of trust. That no matter what may come my way trust. That David and Goliath or Isaac on the altar kind of trust. We all struggle with trusting what we cannot see and in some ways, we cannot see God. We can see His creation, we can see His work in our lives, we can see some of the things that He does, but we cannot see Him. But then I think, well you can’t see air but you still profoundly trust it to fill your lungs. You can’t see sound but you still profoundly trust it to fill your ears. We can’t see Wi-Fi but I still trust (not profoundly) that it will work!
Then I went to the word trust. Defined as “reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety of a person or thing.” This one might be clearer, “to rely upon or place confidence in someone or something; to have confidence, hope.” I can get behind that one. And here’s the last, interestingly enough, it is a verb! That means action! “To rely on, to have trust or confidence, to commit, to permit with trust and confidence.”
Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5
Profound trust defined means relying on God with all your heart, not just a little bit, or on occasion, or with the easy stuff, or just the stuff you can’t handle. It means to the very depths of our soul reliance on Him. Trust Him in everything. It’s not a shallow or waxing and waning trust. God wants us to profoundly trust Him at all times.
My hand’s up, it’s easier said than done. But Profound trust is not impossible. Unfortunately, for us to have profound trust, we must practice and to practice means to be tested. It’s super easy to trust when the world is all roses, ice cream and unicorns, right? But what about when your world is a dark, empty, lonely, uncertain place? What about those times when the path gets windy, we hit a deep pothole and we’re up on two-wheels around a curve?
When we’re in those places in our lives is when we must practice profound trust. Yes, it is practice. How do we do that? First, we get into the Word of God. We check out who He is, we check out the promises that He made, we cling to Him for dear life around that dangerous curve. We memorize scripture to throw back at the evil one, and we call upon God because He is worthy and because He is able.
If you haven’t had a need for profound trust in your life yet, you definitely will. Our world is not changing for the better and we’re told in scripture that it won’t. So, there’s no time like the present to prepare and practice and profoundly trust.
Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock. Isaiah 26:4