It wasn’t until my early twenties that I learned one of life’s most important lessons: Never put your faith in men, only put your faith in God.
Before I became a Christian, I rolled the dice of life and hoped for the best. Some people proved steadfast and kind, others screwed me over and broke my heart.
Trust is something that’s earned, and there’s not many people I fully trust anymore. I’m okay with that. God never said to trust in your neighbor, favorite online personality, political leader, or pastor. I can respect those people and pray for them. I can have an expectation of what they might do based on previous experience, but I don’t necessarily place my trust in them. The only person I do trust unequivocally is my wife but even she forgets to leave the toilet seat up once in a while. Geesh.
It’s important to remember this as we head into a season of elevated expectations. If you’re placing your trust for the restoration of America in the hands of President Trump, it’s misplaced, and wildly so. That’s not a strike against Trump; I believe he very well may be the man God has chosen to heal our nation — he was clearly protected by God from an assassin’s bullet — and if that’s God’s plan, hallelujah. But I don’t count on it, because God repeatedly instructs us to trust in Him alone. You might even say that trust the plan, not men, is the CliffsNotes summary of the scriptures.
And with good reason. Of the 43 kings who ruled Israel and Judah, less than seven of them were righteous in God’s eyes, and of those seven, several screwed up royally at some point during their reign. Keep that in mind as you contemplate the actions of nation states — whether allies or adversaries. “Do they follow Jesus?” is the first question we should be asking when evaluating our support.
Despite our fleshly weaknesses, God uses imperfect people to do His work; they’re literally the only version of people He has to work with.
President Donald J. Trump, J.D. Vance, Tucker Carlson, General Flynn — are these supernaturally protected men God has chosen to lift up and restore America? Are they pretenders seeking to dupe a gullible populace and line their own pockets? Or are they just men living through history and doing the best they can with it? Can we trust the plan?
God only knows. And there’s little point spinning our wheels trying to figure it out.
Study, pray, and take the steps you feel best. There’s no shame in being wrong, or in admitting you’ve changed your mind. It takes courage to do that; cowards double down on stupid. Maybe you got burned by trusting someone. That’s okay. Jesus also knows what it’s like to be betrayed. Move forward and place your trust in better hands next time.
“So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.” –
If you’ve never given your heart to Jesus and are trying to navigate today’s landscape of betrayals and dashed hopes, I feel for you. I used to be there. It wasn’t until I ran out of earthly explanations for the reality before me that I turned my attention to God. He had the answers and the perfect plan, and His truth perfectly aligned with the present and the past.
Unlike every other thing I tried to put my faith into, only He proved worthy of that trust — something to keep in mind, as most of us have lost all faith in the people and institutions we used to esteem. Doctors, nurses, scientists, police departments, churches, the military, even our own friends and family — most of them have failed the freedom test to some degree recently. And more will. It’s a fact of life.
“In this world you will have trouble, but take heart. I have overcome the world.” –
John 16:33
If the person you’re exalting today says something stupid tomorrow, or does something you deem as a betrayal, cry out to Jesus: “Why?” Perhaps He will reveal a truth about them. Or, He might reveal an uncomfortable thought pattern in you, something He wants to clean out or correct. Remember, only narcissists think they’ve got it all figured out.
But even if God doesn’t explain their actions, does it really matter? All the worries of today will fade away via time or fire and only Jesus will remain, with those who love Him standing safely in His presence.
With everything we’re witnessing, I wouldn’t be the least surprised if warrior angels materialized in the physical and opened up a can of whoopa** live on CNN. Nor would it shock me if fifty years from now DJT is a Mount Rushmore-worthy leader for the ages, or alternatively, if he turned out to be the Antichrist.
Things are that tenuous. With global nuclear war and the Biblical rapture equally represented on 2024’s bingo card, there are really only two things left to do: Follow Jesus into battle, and trust the plan.
If you want to give this Trusting Jesus Thing a shot and don’t know how to get started, email me at: contact@vinceguerra.com and I’ll be happy to walk you through it.
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Keep fighting.
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