Trust God

The Free Burma Rangers are not just motivated by love—they are also carried along by faith. They are “sure of what [they] hope for and certain of what [they] do not see.” (Heb 11:1) Their faith can inspire our own in at least four ways...

Trust God’s presence in the midst of tragedies. 

Says one Ranger: “When bad things happen, I dare not complain. I believe where there is suffering—God is there. He will show us the way to go through.” Without faith, we notice the absence of God in atrocities. But with faith, we can discern the presence of God in them. He is not behind the evil or suffering that is happening, but he is present with compassion and comfort in the midst of it, ready to reach into the lives of hurting people.

Trust God’s promises in the midst of despair. 

Says Karen: “When I look around, it’s just despairing. But Jesus has promised things that are better than the reality we see. And if you cannot rely on that promise, what is there to rely on? There’s no human answer that’s going to get you through the next day.” Evidently, Karen follows the example of the apostle Paul who said, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Cor 4:18)

Trust God’s plan in the midst of many distractions. 

As we trust God’s goodness, we can say no to the things that threaten to side-track us, dilute our focus or drain our energy. As Dave says: “I want to say no to the swamp of sin that gets me bogged down and no to the swamp of good things that God didn’t ask me to do that will also bog me down.”

Trust God’s pathway in the midst of life’s brevity. 

Dave inspires us to “run in the path of God’s commandments” (Ps 119:32) when he reveals to us what makes him tick: “You only have one life, you might as well go for it... because what have you really got to hold onto? You’re going to lose your life anyway. So I say yes to all the good things God has for us. I want them. And anything useful to do that I can do, I would like to do it... I want to say yes to that line God has for me, which I believe has no caution lights. It’s green, so go as fast as you want to go. How much faith do you have? Go! That’s what I want to do.” 

Reflect…

Which of these four ways of trusting God is most relevant to you right now:

• Trusting God’s presence in the midst of tragedies?
• Trusting God’s promises in the midst of despair?
• Trusting God’s plan in the midst of many distractions?
• Trusting God’s pathway in the midst of life’s brevity?