Trust!

Trust! Trust is such a small word. It is only 5 letters long, just 1 vowel and 4 constants, such a small word but oh how it contain produce such a wealth of emotions and start so many heated debates, disagreements, and can break so many hearts. The break of a trust can emotionally scar a person for ever.

For some people trust is so easy, especially when they are young. They meet someone and immediately they believe everything that is said to them, believe and expect the person to do what they say. However, in most cases, trust is one of the most difficult things to give another person. Trust freely given and then broken can crush the person's spirit who freely gave their trust to another. The emotional scarring produced causes them to be extremely cautious in ever trusting anyone else. And after awhile, if trust is broken too often, the result is often that the person will wall themselves off and it will be so very hard to trust anyone every again. A wall that almost no one is ever allowed to penetrate.

How do I know this? I have experienced both the benefits and the betrayal of trust. The pain when trust is broken hurts deeply to the very inner core of a person's being. And if done repeatedly it can produce a wall so thick and so wide. A wall that the person places around them so that no one will ever manage to hurt them again. A wall that very few people, if any, are ever able to break through.

I do not have a solution for breaking down this wall. I do know that situations arise, people come and go into your life, and things happen that make you make the decision whether to trust again - DO I REALLY WANT TO RISK THIS? DO I WANT TO TAKE A CHANCE FOR MORE EMOTIONAL SCARRING? IS IT GOING TO BE WORTH IT? AM I GOING TO BE HURT AGAIN?

Walls come in all heights and widths. The walls are not visible. Sometimes the person does not know the wall even exists. And sometimes, God allows the person to glimpse just how high and wide and deep the wall around them is.

God addresses this issue of trust. In Proverb 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord will all thine heart;

Lean not unto thine own understanding.

In all thy ways acknowledge him,

And he shall direct thy paths.

Is it worth the risk of trusting again? I really cannot answer that question, except to say - I trust the Lord will all my heart and I believe his word. If a certain situation calls for trust, if a special person comes into your life and you need to trust them.... Well, if you trust God, and you do not question, but do what you feel God is telling you to do - whether it makes sense to you or not - even if you are hesitant to risk more emotional scarring -if you never give your trust to another, you will never know - you do not know if your heart is going to be broken ..... or if this is going to be the one situation/person who is able to break through that wall and actually reach the inner part of you. However I do firmly believe that if you do trust, and if your heart is broken again, then you can still trust God to be there to comfort you, to help you pick up the pieces, and to support you while you do so. The decision is yours to trust again or to not trust again. As for me, I am willing to follow God's leading as to whether to take the chance or not. And I think it is almost time to trust again - at least with baby steps.