Proverbs 21:31

The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but the victory belongs to the Lord.

Okay, truth game. I am going to ask you a question. By the way, you don’t have to write the answer on your Facebook page for everyone to see and comment on. And you don’t have to include it in your blog. So keep this one just between you and God. And be honest…because, well, he knows your heart. So here is the question: What do you trust in? What do you really trust in? Let me offer what I think are some top ten answers.

• Hard work. If I work hard enough, I can achieve everything I want to achieve. Now, God is all about being a diligent worker. But trusting in hard work alone is trusting in human effort.
• Degrees. I must have a certain degree to do a certain thing that I want to do with my life. That’s somewhat true but trusting in a degree alone is trusting in human achievement.
• Relationships. Some people pervert the richness of relationships into a need that leads them to do anything to be secure, loved, or accepted. A trust in relationships to meet your need to be needed is trusting in a human being.
• Government. I love our country and believe we should be active, well-informed citizens. But trusting in government to keep us safe and fed is trusting in a human institution.
• Money. The emotion of the Great Depression is often described in one word—panic. The emotion of the recent downturn is not far from that same emotion. Jesus was clear that we cannot serve God and money. Trusting in money is trusting in a human economy.

Our proverb reminds us today that we are responsible for getting the horse ready for battle. We work productively, earn the appropriate degrees, develop healthy relationships, pray and participate as citizens, and use our money as good stewards. But we cannot trust in any of these alone. Victory rests with the Lord. All these things are “a false hope for salvation, and by [a war horse’s] great might it cannot rescue” (Psalm 33:17). And certainly, some will trust in “chariots and some in horses,” but for believers, “we trust in the name of the Lord our God” (Psalm 20:7). Now, back to my question: What do you really trust in?

Father, I know the right answer, but sometimes it is so hard to follow up with the right action. I know you are trustworthy, but I sometimes trust in other things to get what I think I need. As I make the horse “ready for the day of battle,” I sometimes forget where victory will come from. Forgive me. May my trust always be in you alone.

In Jesus’ name.

Amen.