Trusting in the Trustworthy One

Hello, friend.

I’m Dawn Tolbert, author of I’d Rather Die Than Obey, a Bible study of the book of Jonah that explores what it means to trust God even when it hurts.

And this is the Unwrapping Rest podcast.

My desire is to encourage frazzled women to stop striving and unwrap God’s gift of rest.

I’m so glad you’re here.

Welcome to Episode 8, Trusting in the Trustworthy One.

Faith in God does not mean we get to avoid hard things, but we can be confident that God is with us, caring for us and guiding us along the way.

We just need to ask for His help and trust His promise to be our shield.

When I wrote those words last March, I had no idea what the coming months would have in store.

Larry and I had excitedly said yes to an opportunity to serve with our church and thought our biggest hurdles would be long flights, packing challenges, and spiritual warfare designed to turn our focus from the purpose of our trip.

I never imagined that on the very day our team would have been beginning the work we’d prayed for, Larry and I would be sitting in a pre-op room waiting for me to have surgery.

I didn’t imagine that what started as a strange symptom I wanted to ask the doctor about would wind up with the diagnosis of endometrial cancer.

Today, with the hindsight of a few months, I’m rejoicing that we caught the cancer early and that surgery was all the treatment I needed.

I’m also marveling over the fact that God’s faithfulness has so little to do with our ability to carry out our plans.

It’s important for you to notice that I said our plans—as in my plans or your plans.

See, the planner in me likes to feel in control.

I like having my to-do list organized, my tasks carefully numbered, and my schedule mapped out.

Then I can get down to work, checking each item off one by one.

That’s how things operate in my best-laid, agenda-driven world.

But as this new year dawns, my over-planner heart is tempted to kick into high gear.

The truth is simple.

God isn’t interested in me having a firmer grip on my life.

In fact, He wants me to let go.

He’s less concerned about which planner I use and far more interested in the person I’m becoming.

He wants me to relinquish my desire to control the future and trust Him—not only with the ultimate outcome, but also with the day-to-day, step-by-step journey that gets me there.

And “there” isn’t always the place I first imagined.

When I shared that I might not be able to make our planned trip, one of the people we would have served prayed the sweetest prayer.

She asked God to use me for His glory, whether in the country where they served or right here at home.

I had a grand agenda of what I thought should happen.

God had a different destination in mind.

I needed to plan less and trust more.

Trust is easy to say, but it’s hard to do.

It’s one of those words that can be surprisingly difficult to define.

Merriam-Webster points out that trust is both a noun and a verb.

As a noun, it means assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.

Its synonyms include assurance and hope.

As a verb, it means to rely on, place confidence in, or depend upon.

In other words, trust always has an object.

It’s not enough simply to trust.

We have to know who we’re trusting.

Sorry—I didn’t mean to word-nerd out on you there.

But I love the words we’ve gathered while trying to better understand what trust really means.

Assurance.

Hope.

Believe.

Entrust.

Rely.

Depend.

Notice what’s missing.

Nowhere on that list are words like control, schedule, plan, or hustle.

Don’t misunderstand me.

Prayer and time in God’s Word are deeply important.

But they’re not tasks to conquer.

They’re invitations into relationship.

Our focus isn’t completing spiritual checklists.

It’s growing in intimacy with God and becoming more like Him each day.

When I trust God to handle things, the responsibility for the outcome shifts from my weary shoulders to the One Isaiah described centuries before Jesus’ birth:

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

What a promise.

The child promised in Isaiah is Jesus—Emmanuel, God with us.

His very names remind us that He is trustworthy.

Jesus Himself declared in John 10:10 that He came so we might have life, and have it abundantly.

Just a few chapters earlier we read the words many of us know by heart:

“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Because of God’s great love, Jesus willingly died for our sins, conquered death, and invites us into God’s family forever.

What an incredible promise.

And it is one we can trust completely.

Will you trust Him?

Maybe this year hasn’t unfolded the way you planned.

Maybe you’re carrying deep hurt or facing an unexpected diagnosis.

Maybe you simply feel weary and alone.

There is hope in Jesus.

He offers forgiveness, peace, joy, and eternal life.

To receive this gift, we simply admit our need for Him, believe that Jesus died and rose again for our salvation, and confess Him as Lord.

If you’ve never trusted Christ, you can pray something as simple as this:

Heavenly Father, I admit that I’m a sinner and cannot handle life in my own strength.

Please forgive me.

I believe Jesus is Your Son, that He died for my sins and rose again.

Today I receive Him as my Savior.

I trust You.

Jesus is Lord of my life.

Thank You for saving me.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

If you’re already part of God’s family, rejoice in the One who is faithful and true.

Thank Him for His goodness, mercy, grace, and love.

Then look for opportunities to tell others about His faithfulness.

Would you join me in prayer?

Heavenly Father, I stop in the middle of the rush and busyness of life to thank You for Your love and care.

Thank You that You know the hurts no one else understands.

I come to You worn out from striving, asking You to carry the burdens I’ve been trying to shoulder in my own strength.

Like the psalmist, I lift my eyes to the hills.

My help comes from You, the Maker of heaven and earth.

Teach me to rely on You for strength, peace, and joy.

Great is Your faithfulness.

I put all my trust in You.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

As we close, listen again to this promise from Isaiah 26:3–4:

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.”

What a wonderful promise as we learn to trust in the Trustworthy One.