Trust God and Find Rest From Stress - Carla D Burnette

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Are you facing a situation that causes your heart to race leaving you stressed and overwhelmed? Perhaps it is a health issue, financial hardship, relational conflict or even the turmoil in our world. Whatever the situation, Scripture assures us that we can trust God and find rest from stress.

Jeremiah 17:7-8 says, “The person who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence indeed is the Lord, is blessed. He will be like a tree planted by water: it sends its roots out toward a stream, it doesn’t fear when heat comes, and its foliage remains green. It will not worry in a year of drought or cease producing fruit” (CSB).

Cultivating Trust

First, what does it mean to trust God? The Biblical definition of trust is “assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone”.

Friends, when we are stressed over a situation, we doubt God’s character and His care of us.

So what do we do then? Go to the Lord in prayer, ask for His forgiveness in doubting Him, and surrender the situation to Him. Request the Lord’s guidance on what to do and His help to trust.

Even if the situation remains the same, keep trusting. Set your mind on God’s truth by declaring His promises and His character. Jesus declared the Word when tempted in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11). Let’s respond in the same manner when tempted to fear or worry. (For printable Scripture verses to help you combat fear, click Join Newsletter.)

Time in God’s Word

But in order to declare or speak the Word, we have to know the Word. Are we consistently spending time in God’s Word and meditating on it?

Romans 15:4-5a states, “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope and overflow with confidence in His promises.” (AMP).

Don’t we find encouragement and hope when we read how God provides and intervenes on behalf of those who believe in Him? Like Daniel in the lion’s den; Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace; David when facing Goliath; and many others. Time in the Word cultivates trust in God’s character and confidence in His promises.

Additionally, looking back at answered prayer and how He has provided for us in the past fuels our faith, cultivating trust and confidence as well. We realize how faithful God is no matter what the situation. If He was faithful then, He will be faithful now.

Finding Rest

V 7. “The person who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence indeed is the Lord, is blessed.”

Notice that those who trust God and have confidence in Him are blessed or happy. Blessed because we are convinced that God is with us and will take care of us. We know He is faithful and is our peace. Thus, confidence in the Lord enables us to find rest from stress.

Like a Tree That Flourishes

Furthermore, when we trust God, we are compared to a tree that flourishes in every season.

V. 8, “He will be like a tree planted by water: it sends its roots out toward a stream, it doesn’t fear when heat comes, and its foliage remains green. It will not worry in a year of drought or cease producing fruit.”

Because the tree is planted by its source of nourishment, it flourishes and withstands heat and drought. The tree’s roots absorb the nutrients for it to thrive from the soil and water where it is planted.

Just like a tree, we require nourishment, not just physical, but also spiritual. Jesus tells us in Matthew 4:4, ‘“Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God”’ (CSB). Plus Jesus, Himself, is described as “the Word” in John 1:1.

Jesus, Our Source of Life

Since Jesus is our source of nourishment, let’s plant or root ourselves in Him. Then, as we spend time in the Word and with our Lord, our roots (our trust) will grow deeper in Christ. We won’t fear or worry during times of hardship. Instead, we confidently trust in God’s faithfulness and find rest from stress in His presence. Like a tree, we flourish in every season.

According to the Faithlife Study Bible, “Trusting in Yahweh is likened to being continually connected to a source of life-giving water”.

Friends, let’s aspire to be women who trust God no matter what difficulty we may face by continually abiding in Jesus, our source of life-giving water. By dwelling in Him, we will trust and find rest from stress.

Father, You are faithful and nothing is impossible for You. Forgive us for doubting Your care of us. We lay down _____ and turn it all over to You. Give us strength and help us to trust in You. Thank You that You are watching over us and will take care of us. We love You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Additional Scripture References

Psalm 112:1,7 “Happy is the person who fears the Lord, taking great delight in His commands. He will not fear bad news; his heart is confident, trusting in the Lord” (CSB).

Psalm 84:12, “O Lord of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in You!” (ESV.)

Romans 15:13, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (NIV).

Psalm 1:2,3 “his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers” (ESV)

(read my post: Delighting in the Word)