But as for me, I trust in You, O Lord,
I say, “You are my God.”
My times are in Your hand; Psalm 31:14-15a (NASB)
These words, written by David, express an intentional decision to trust the LORD. Why? Because the LORD was his God. And in stating his times were in the LORD’s hand, he was proclaiming God’s sovereignty over his life.
I first began to claim these words as my own during a time of great uncertainty. I would speak them out loud. I was reminding myself to trust in the LORD and His sovereignty over my life.
I think we can all agree our lives are currently filled with uncertainties. There are so many changes taking place in so many areas of life, and yet, I believe we can still trust in the unchanging character of the LORD our God.
I love that He holds my times in His hand. He holds your times in His hand too. Whether we choose to trust Him or not. Whether we choose to call Him LORD or believe in His sovereignty.
Who God is does not change because of what we do or do not believe about Him.
Truth? In the everyday of living, our choices are the only thing we can control.
These times we live in are crazy; they’re totally out of our control.
But our times are not out of God’s control. He’s actually outside of time and is able to see our entire timeline. He knows what’s coming and the choices we’re going to make. But, we live inside time; the results of our choices are unseen by us until after we make those choices.
So how do we know what to choose? I know of two surefire ways.
By reading God’s word, the Bible. It’s His story and filled with His instructions for how we can live a full and satisfying life. God’s word changes the way we think. Changed thinking brings changed choices and changed living.
Holy Spirit is the second way we can know what to choose. He’s our Helper. He lives in every Jesus-follower and it’s part of His job description to remind us of everything we’ve learned. He equips us with all we need to follow Jesus and live well.
Following Jesus in all our ways and at all times is not always easy, but it is absolutely possible with the help of Holy Spirit.
So what does any of that have to do with our times? Everything!
Trusting Jesus allows us to follow Him well and traverse the hard places of life without hesitation. Believing He’s sovereign, and therefore not surprised by anything that happens in our life, allows us to relax into Him through the craziness and out-of-control times of life.
Through the death of loved ones.
Through unexpected expenses.
Through health problems.
Through homeschooling children, loss of job, sheltering in place…
Through everything.
He is our God and our times are in His hand.
Notice it says hand, not hands. Why? I think it’s because His other hand is busy working all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. That’s us, Jesus-followers!
Just because the LORD our God is outside of time, doesn’t mean He’s distant and detached from us. And just because He’s not surprised by what’s happening in our times, doesn’t mean He doesn’t care about us or what we’re facing.
Just the opposite! He cares very much and wants desperately for us to turn to Him for the help and answers we need. He wants to give us everything we need to make the best choices possible.
God has the answers we need. He is willing and able to help. All we have to do is ask.
If you’re like me, you think about praying for yourself more often than you actually do. I will quickly and diligently pray on behalf of another, but I too often find myself thinking about the difficulty, dilemma, drama of my life instead of talking to God (praying) about it.
So, now you know why I speak this verse over myself. It’s my way of reminding myself God’s not absent from my situation; He’s got me covered in every situation and circumstance. He’s sovereign, loves me, and is totally trustworthy!
LORD, I want to trust You with all of my times. Help me to more quickly recognize those times when I’m not trusting You. Help me to turn from going my own way and be more diligent about seeking You and Your way. I want to truly trust You in all of my times.
And LORD, for those reading this today, please help them to seek You for themselves and trust You even when they’re caught by surprise. Help them to trust You enough to not only know Your way for them, but choose to do everything Your way. Amen.
“Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®,
Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995
by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.”