The Joshua Collective

One of my favorite commercials recently comes from the Mac vs. PC series.  Mac is making fun of how much fine print PC is using to protect itself from angry consumers whose computers crash and freeze repeatedly.  I know this experience myself.  I have to review the fine print on iTunes every time there is an update that is released (and by review, I mean scroll very quickly).  The coupon I got the from the Phoenix Suns last regular season game had fine print too.  I thought it meant what it said “Free Iced Coffee” from McDonalds.  Once I read the fine print, I realized that if I bought any sandwich there, I would get a free medium iced coffee (and have the cashier charge me anyway and have the other cashier give me the wrong sandwich – it was a great Saturday morning – can’t you tell?!)

Danny Ortega’s post last week raised some great questions and the most comments and views of any post so far on this rather new blog experiment.  One theme emerged which i would like to jump on.  So, what does it mean to trust God?  For those of us like my friend Michael and me, this questions becomes difficult to navigate since we are self-motivated, driven individuals who like being responsible for our own destinies.  Yet, others love the idea because it justifies their laziness and resistance to personal responsibility (see my bias yet?).  But, the necessity of trusting God – especially with our finances and even more during the period we know finds ourselves in – is unavoidable in the Scriptures.

One of the most famous passages within section of the New Testament known as the Epistles is Hebrews 11. It basically reads like a “Hall of Fame” montage that you would expect on VH1 or ESPN.  Except these people are recognized for the faith and trust they had in God’s character and promises.  All of the big names are here – Moses, Abraham, Joseph, Noah.  Some lesser names get the nod – Rahab, Barak, and Gideon.  But this section always resonates with me.

“And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.  Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection.  Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison.  They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” -Hebrews 11:32-40

I always liked the idea of trusting God, until I got to this passage.  Many of these people saw God move in a powerful way on their behalf.  But the writer of Hebrews says “none of them received what had been promised.”  I think the great question when it comes to trusting God is “do you trust the character of God even when the events of your life and the results of your work do not produce ‘the promise’?”

Most of the time I do not.  And I can spiritualize everything else.  But the hardest part of trusting God for me is when I realize that my expectations are still left unmet and God is still God.  I get pretty hacked off.  Was that in the fine print?

-Scott