Proverbs 3:5

Have you ever heard of a person having a “life verse?” If so, you probably know what I’m talking about. But if not, I suppose what someone means by that is that they are drawn to a particular passage of Scripture. Perhaps it’s a promise from Scripture they are believing God to come through on or maybe a truth they have relied on throughout their life. For my grandma, Irene Boldman, I can remember it like it was yesterday (For those of you listening or reading, you are probably questioning that because you know how awful my memory is, but seriously I have vivid memories of this), as she would quote the first few verses of John 14. Even in her last days, the words, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you,” would just roll off her lips with ease.

I remember the same to be true for my mother, Pam Wilson, except her life verse (or better yet life verses) were found in the Proverbs, specifically Proverbs 3:5-6. As I flipped through the first few pages of Proverbs in Souter’s Bible, I saw those same words circled, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” Immediately, my mind was flooded with memories. Memories of my mother sharing those words at the closing of a Christmas program or as she shared a Sunday school lesson to a group of teenagers. I remember her quoting those verses in the car one morning on my way to school after finishing devotions together—those memories are precious. But more than simply hearing those words, I witnessed her life demonstrate the meaning behind them. Souter’s life too, for that matter. My mom started walking with Jesus at the age of the seven. She grew up attending Rush Free Baptist Church in McDermott, Ohio and in 1955, at the church, outside under the shade of a tree amid the summer’s heat, my mom made the decision to place her trust in Jesus. But can you guess who the pastor was at that time? And who helped explain the Gospel to my mom and prayed with her? Well, if you guessed Souter Hoople, you would be right.

Years later, in 1992, as a seven year old boy, I attended a Vacation Bible School at Otway Christian Union Church where my mother now served as the youth leader. At this time in Souter’s life, he also attended Otway Christian Union. You probably know where this is headed, right? I, too, made the decision to place my trust in Jesus with Souter by my side.

I’m confident these verses resonate with me so intently because of the testimonies and memories. The fact that Souter was a part of my mother’s faith journey and my own speaks of his faithfulness and trust in the Lord.

That word “trust” is one that is heavy with meaning. Literally, it means to “place your full weight on.” Think about it for a minute though. Seriously. You trust all the time. You sit down in chairs you didn’t build. You cross bridges you didn’t engineer. You eat food you didn’t prepare. We all trust, but what matters most is where we place our trust for life now and forever. I think it’s important to be clear here. Trusting is more than an intellectual assent, which by definition is simply a decision that we make in our head, but lacks the commitment of our heart. This is a commitment of your life. Simply put, it’s all of you. I think that’s why the Proverb continues, “Trust in the Lord with ALL thine heart.”

While he calls us to a total commitment, the temptation each of us face is to “lean on our own understanding.” We have a tendency to think we know best. We trust in our abilities, our knowledge, our ________ (fill in the blank).

And while not circled in Souter’s Bible, the accompanying verse, Proverbs 3:6, brings more clarity to this truth. “In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths,” In all we do, we should “acknowledge” God, which means to let others know about Him through our words and actions. I think I can say it like this. The focus of our life is to make it all about Him. When we choose to live our life like this, it’s difficult to make it about us. It reminds me of something John the Baptist said, “He must increase and I must decrease.” Following Jesus is not simply adding Jesus to your life and continuing to live for yourself. Instead, He becomes your life. When we live for Him, as the Scripture promises, “He will direct thy paths.”

This makes me think of driving a car in the winter with a windshield full of frost? I’m not the only one that does this, right? It seems I’m always running late so I scrape off just a small area just big enough so I can peek through catching small glimpses of the road ahead. As we live for Him and continue walking with Him, it’s like us trying to navigate the landscape and God turns on the defrost full blast. We slowly see more and with greater clarity.

But the promise all circles back to the word “trust.” So take a few minutes today and consider where you are placing your trust. If you find that you have placed your trust and faith in anything other than God, let me challenge you to hit reset and align yourself with Him. And if you don’t have a life verse yet, let me recommend Proverbs 3:5-6. It’s a great place to start.