Worship Articles

Michael Cochran writes: "I've written for over 30 years as I believe I'm given an inspiring word to share. Presently I'm working on my Masters in Biblical Studies and have been accepted into the Theology Doctoral Program. My desire is to share my writings in hopes of encouraging others in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. My desire when I finish my graduate work is to write Bible Curriculum. I Pray these stories/articles have blessed you and they may touch the lives of those you know." www.mikecochran.org

The Christian faith is predicated upon the concept that “trust” in God through His Son, Jesus the Christ, as “the way, the truth, and the life,” (John 14:6 NKJV) is the solution to the problems of humanity. Jesus commands believers, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God” (John 14:1 NKJV). It appears overly simplistic, but this is all believers are required to do in overcoming obstacles and hardships, trust. What does it mean to trust God?

Trust in God means believing that He will deliver as the Bible claims he will. (Philippians 4:6-7 NKJV)  “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Trust in God involves an internalized belief that he is omnipresent and omnipotent, supplanting the need to worry, to fear, to feel insecure, or to control outcomes. This belief trumps all other beliefs. Faith that He will deliver on His promise to us is a powerful concept. Anxiety, fear, and frustration arise from the belief that something “should be” different than it is. They are products of faith lacking. They come from flawed or faulty thinking, outside the promise of God.

When we align our thinking with the promise of God's protection, there is nothing to fear, nothing to control, and nothing to worry about. At this point, “nothing can separate us from the love of God.” “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39 NKJV). If we cannot be separated from the love of God, then nothing else matters. We have this promise in dealing with obstacles and hardships we face whether physical or spiritual.

God first demands our faith and our trust, and then He provides us with whatever we need to make the process flow. Learning to accept what we cannot control is one of the most difficult lessons of life. However, we cannot claim the blessings of faith unless we are first able to let go of our need for answers, our need for control, our need for specific outcomes in the facing of hardships or obstacles.

Whenever spiritual or physical obstacles confront us all we need to do is reconfirm our faith and our trust in God while turning the problems over to Him. At this point they cease to be obstacles. Here we exchange the obstacles for expressions of faith, making them insignificant. Whereby, we learn that faith in God is the most important value, not the value of things over which we worry and stress.

We need do nothing other than trust and believe in the power of the promise. (Philippians 4:6-7 NKJV) “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

(© 2012 Michael Cochran – All rights reserved. Written material may not be duplicated without permission.)