“If you are going to pray, pray. If you are going to worry, worry. But you can’t do both.” – 50 cent

Out of Love comes Trust:

Here’s a thought that changed my life – “God Loves Me.”

A few years ago, I had my first realization that God loves me. I had heard this fact my entire life.

But.

I noticed that even though I knew I was loved by God, I kept forgetting about that Love. I had trouble trusting that God would be there for me. I had trouble trusting God had my back and would provide for me.

I defended myself, hustled for worthiness, tried to fit in, make others love me.  Then I came to the realization that all of this stemmed from not fully embracing God’s love.

And I became a mother…

There I was, a mere mortal, loving with a new, fierce unrelenting love… Wanting to give my children every good thing, willing to do anything to see my children healthy, abundant, joyful, fulfilled… As a mother, my love knows no bounds…

So, imagine an infinite God with limitless love, who loves you with an eternal, fierce and unrelenting love.

God deeply loves you. Pure, all-encompassing Love…

Unconditional, deep, ever-present…

The Love was there all along… I just needed to accept it.

I have a nightly gratitude practice. So for several weeks, I added a new practice of thanking God for loving me.

After spending months meditating on God’s love, I now realize something.

I am God’s spoiled brat. You are too!

Yes, God has spoiled me rotten… I just didn’t see it…  By acknowledging this Love and looking for things to be grateful for, I find that I have been blessed beyond my wildest dreams.

Think about it. If you loved someone, how would you treat them? Think about someone you truly loved…

You give them gifts, spend time with them, say kind things to them, do things for them and touch them… (all 5 love languages).  You constantly look for ways to show that you care.

I believe that God feels this way about us. We just need to pay attention. It is why I keep a gratitude journal and write 15 things I am grateful for every night.

I believe there are proofs, samples of God’s love around us… That sunrise, that surprise check in the mail, that kind stranger.

A key component of love is trust. If you know that someone loves you, truly loves you and that they are willing to do anything for you,  you trust them.

And with trust comes surrender…

Surrender – True manifestation of trust

How would you know that you truly trusted someone? Would you second-guess them? Cross-examine them?

Surrender is a core spiritual practice for me.

It is my desire to live completely and utterly abandoned to God.

This decision has changed how I show up in the world. I don’t have to be defensive, strive for worthiness, or worry (Well, I do occasionally! I am human! )

And apparently I am not alone.

Over the past few days, I have heard one recurring theme in  several  stories  from friends who don’t know one another.

Each friend decided to trust Divine providence. Each decided to trust God, trust the inklings, the still small voice, pack up all their belonging with very little money and travel across the country to a new state, where neither family, nor shelter awaited.

And each relocation worked out well beyond expectations.

Sometimes I wonder why the creed “In God, we trust” is  inscribed on the dollar.

Since money is directly related to our sustenance and ties in  deeply with our self-preservation… some of us hold on to money tightly,  lose control over perceived or real shortage, lose trust in providence…

…to our detriment.

I am there right now. This blog is a new venture.  I have no idea how things will end up or where this will take me.

I only know that for some reason, as much as I tried to avoid it and keep up with my peers, my path always seems to be winding a different way. Going left when my peers are veering right.

And it feels right.

I choose to trust God and surrender to the path unfolding before me. Showing up moment by moment, choosing courage, choosing to walk by faith.

What do you do when your circumstances dictate one way and you know that God is leading you another way?

Do you trust the Creator of the Universe, the Provider of all things, the One who knows the desires you haven’t even verbalized  to take care of you?

I am not talking about dogma or religion. We are beyond that. I don’t have all the answers. This is bigger than that little box we feel the need to check and stuff God into.  I share what is true for me and hope it serves you in any way.

Imagine having to carry a huge load of rocks on your back, when there is truck right next to you!

Not surrendering to the Divine is like carrying an unnecessary burden… It hurts no one but you.

It’s like a life guard rescuing a drowning swimmer. That swimmer has to surrender and stop fighting in order to be rescued.  It’s like that trust exercise in team development – falling back, trusting the others will catch you.

Things might not be the way you want them to be. But you don’t know the whole picture. The Divine, God is always working… especially behind the scenes, like the tangled strings behind a beautiful tapestry…

Be rest assured today. Just as surely as the sun will rise tomorrow morning, you will be taken care of.

But (Wow, I am really quoting 50cent!) “you can’t worry and pray at the same time.”

Choosing Prayer over Worry:

I fret because I don’t trust God to have my back.

Surrender doesn’t not mean giving up or cowering in fear and defeat. It is choosing to look up, courageously letting go of the need to control everything and trusting in the Power that holds the Universe together.

It’s saying “Help me! Please!”

A few months ago, I had a little zit between my eyes. Tired, right before bed,   I began to pick at it, compulsively. I went to bed. When I woke up the next morning, I had a huge black dot between my eyes. I had scarred my face. And To this day I still have that large round dot between my eyes, A sober reminder to “surrender, not fret. ”

We scar ourselves when we worry.

We are saying “hey God, I got this… I don’t trust you to handle this issue.”

I believe that cultivating trust in God is a non-negotiable step in cultivating trust. Only when you trust God can you begin to trust and love yourself. and then, others.  All of which I will talk about next time.

I will leave with one of my favorite verses “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”  – Phil 4: 17

Instead of worrying, try spend some time connecting with God and talking about your concerns.

And then Let it all go.

You will be fine.

Cultivating Trust in the Divine: 

1. What worries you?

2. Do you trust God? What steps  can you take right now to trust God more?

3. What gets in the way of that trust?

4. Have you ever experienced providence?

5. What would it take for you to surrender?

6. Do you have a spiritual practice that includes prayer?

7. Do you feel loved by God? Do you see signs of that love around you? Start a gratitude journal.

 

Surrendering is the key to trusting the Divine… It sis saying, I know you will take care of me, I trust you to carry me throught this situation, I trust you to be ther for me. provide for me, protect me. I trust. you.

Yvonne Whitelaw writes for Yvonnewhitelaw.com where she blogs about her quest to grow into her ideals in her “Live Your Ideals Project”. By sharing her lessons along the way (every Monday and Thursday), she hopes to serve and inspire a tribe of wholehearted warriors like you, to “live your ideals, live your calling and change the world.”