Brennan Manning

The Way Of Trust                


"When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God whose words I praise, In God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal men do to me?" (Psalm 56:3-4)

Of what avail is our life of prayer, our study of scripture, theology, and spirituality, if we do not trust the insights that we have received? Waffling back and forth between a decisive yes, and a discouraging no keeps us in a state of terminal procrastination. Likewise, an exclusive emphasis on the burning theological issues of the day (many of which are neither burning nor theological) or a one sided emphasis on the pressing issues of social justice can temporarily or even permanently postpone a decision to trust in the love of God, thus keeping us in a state of spiritual limbo.

"To live without risk, is to risk not living,” my paternal grandma used to say. The way of trust is risky business, no doubt about it. To change careers suddenly because one feels unfulfilled, to assume the energy-depleting care of elderly parents, to retreat for three days of silence and solitude with Jesus, and not climbing the walls, to volunteer for a summer in the sub-Sahara with only meager spiritual resources, to take an unpopular position with rumblings of fear in the background, to conquer disillusionment when one finds untrustworthiness where least expected¾all these challenges require a willingness to risk a journey into the unknown and readiness to trust God even in the darkness.

A person should not act impulsively, of course. A careful discernment process involving family, friends, and a spiritual mentor should precede every major decision. But when the appropriate time comes, only the disciple with an unflinching trust in God will dare to risk. And that trust is not naive; it knows that the possibility of making a mistake and getting hurt is very real. But without exposure to potential failure, there is no risk.

In explaining the growth of his faith, psychiatrist Gerald May writes, "I know that God is loving and that God's love is trustworthy. I know this directly, through the experience of my life. There have been plenty of times of doubt, especially when I used to believe that trusting God’s goodness meant I would not be hurt. But having been hurt quite a bit, I know Gods goodness goes deeper than all pleasure and pain--it embraces them both "

Naturally, the risk takers are unnerving to the palace guards, who are threatened by anyone who trusts in God rather than the law. The latter tend to despise men and women who are not as cautious as they. They elevate themselves above the sinner and the nonconformist. Because of this reliance on self, coupled with a lack of self knowledge, the legalists render themselves incapable of receiving grace; they do not, and dare not live by trust in a loving God. They shake their heads, invoke hallowed traditions, and gratuitously employ their most potent and cruel weapon: guilt tripping. Threatened by the freedom of anyone who trusts in God rather than the law, legalists warn of dire consequences and howl like a wolf pack in the night.

The disciple, however, no longer plagued by the desire to please others and valuing God’s approval more than the disapproval of humans, moves on with eyes fixed on Jesus, "the author and pioneer of our trust" (Heb. 12:2).

           I found Henri Nouwen’s most recent book fascinating. While his earlier works were peppered with the word faith, in The Inner Voice of Love, a relatively brief (I15 page) book published on the day of his death, Nouwen uses the word faith once, and trust or trusting sixty-five times. My point? Somewhere along the way, in the life of the maturing Christian, faith combined with hope grows into trust. Based on the lived experience of Gods relentless faithfulness, a confidence blossoms that God is with us to continue and finish what he started. So unwavering was this trust in Nouwen's life that he envisioned his own death as a happy experience. Of this I am convinced, and I suspect that fidelity to the way of trust will lead us to the same place it took Job: "Even though he slay me, yet will I trust him" (Job 13:15, KJV).

The reality of naked trust is the life of a pilgrim who leaves what is nailed down, obvious, and secure, and walks into the unknown without any rational explanation to justify the decision or guarantee the future. Why, Because God has signaled the movement and offered it his presence and his promise.  

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Taken from “Ruthless Trust; The Ragamuffin’s Path to God, by Brennan Manning. Used by permission. Buy It Now at the  Bookshelf

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