RELATIONAL TRUST

Read Ephesians Chapter 3
Key Verse -- Ephesians 3:17
"Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong."
Trust is defined as "to rely upon or place confidence in someone or something". We know that Christ desires to have domain within our hearts. But it is up to us just how comfortable he is allowed to be there. By failing to trust God with our lives, we are, in essence, jerking the rug out from under him time and time again.
Let's look at it another way. If you worked for a company and your boss came to you and said "you have shown tremendous potential and have continued to be successful. I am putting you in charge of our new project. It is the most important thing in our company today. I am giving you this responsibility because I trust you to work hard and to make it a great success." You would feel pretty special, right? To think that your superiors would trust you that much would probably give you the confidence you needed to make the big decisions that would shape the project. But how would you feel if the next day your boss came back to you and said, "I trust you, but I am going to handle this part of the project."? Maybe day by day that supervisor would take one responsibility after another away from you to the point that you didn't really have any influence at all in the project. You wouldn't feel very trusted would you?
I wonder how often I have done the very same thing to Christ. I say, "Oh, Lord I trust you. Take over my life. Mold me; shape me in the way you would have me to be. Have your way in my life." Then when things get a little tricky or seem a little shaky I say, "Well...I trust you Lord, but I am just going to take control in this one area." It's like I give him control, and then take it away. Give it. Take it. Over and over again. What a roller coaster ride!
The strongest relationships in the world are built on trust. Marriages, friendships, even business partnerships that are successful are so, because the parties involved trust one another. Does that mean that moments never came along that tested the mettle of that trust? Of course not; what it means is that even when those tough times came they stuck it out, because they trust each other. Relational trust can only occur through real relationships. Trust is not a theory.
I must trust God - not just in theory - but in practice. I must place my life in His hands and leave it there to fully trust. That means that I must take my life from my own hands. Paul said that if we do this then our roots will grow down into God's love and keep us strong. Be patient. Trust God. Roots cannot grow if we are always pulling up the vine.
Prayer - Lord, I love you enough to believe you love me, therefore I trust you. Control me, mold me, and use me as you know best. Give me the steadfastness to wait upon you.