What does it mean to trust in God? Christians who call themselves faithful may say they place their uncertainties or difficult decisions in the “hands of God.” But trusting in God does not mean stepping out of the picture.
St. Ignatius tells a story in his autobiography that gives an example of an immature understanding of trust in God. On the road to Montserrat, at the beginning of his new life as a follower (or soldier, as he might say) of Christ, Ignatius encountered a Moor who disagreed with some of his beliefs. According to Ignatius, the man was disrespectful of the Virgin Mary. Ignatius, in a reactive moment, felt that he should kill the Moor to defend Mary’s honor. As the Moor went off, Ignatius decided at a fork in the road that if his donkey went down the path the Moor had taken, he would kill the man, but if the donkey went the other way then he would not. Thankfully the donkey chose the path that did not lead to murder!
While St. Ignatius might have thought that this was a form of discernment that trusted in God’s decision, it was not! (He matured a lot after that experience.) Real trust in God does not shift responsibility away from us. I recently was asked to draw out a “map” of my faith story, where I came from, and what important moments led me to where I am now. I considered my upbringing in the faith, receiving the sacraments of initiation, my time in college and then in the Jesuits, and the relationships I’ve had, finally ending where I am now: engaged and studying theology in graduate school. Looking at my faith map I could see the hand of God. But each step was never outside of the choices I made. There was always some discernment that led me to choose the next path, and then the next.
A mature trust of God is trust in the fruits of discernment and reflection leading us to make one decision or another. We should never carelessly leave it up to chance. Trust in God is not about chance or luck; it’s about collaborating with God on the choices for my life. God guides me, prompts me, and may even push me, but ultimately every choice is up to me.
I love this idea of a spiritual map. I haven’t done this before, but I started working on one after reading this. I look forward to contemplating it further for the next few weeks. Great post!
For me, trusting in God means asking Him for guidance and enlightenment not only when I have a decision to make, but in everything that I do, say and think each day. I pray to the Holy Spirit several times a day. And I have taught my grandchildren to do the same. God bless you.
The entire post is excellent but I really appreciate this particular portion as it is a succinct and accurate summation: “it’s about collaborating with God on the choices for my life. God guides me, prompts me, and may even push me, but ultimately every choice is up to me.”
Thank you very much.
Well said! As difficult as it is to work through the process of prayer, discernment, choice, more prayer, we must persevere. I find it very disturbing to hear people of faith exclaim “If it’s meant to be….” and then when things fall apart, conclude with “Everything happens for a reason…”, having made no attempt to fulfill their obligation of discernment and then act upon it. Active faith does not roll the dice, does not play games of chance. As Tim writes, we have a responsibility for our actions and inactions, for what we have done and failed to do.
And, I would confess, I am no paradigm of virtue when it comes to discernment and action.
…But each step was never outside of the choices I made. There was always some discernment that led me to choose the next path, and then the next…We should never carelessly leave it up to chance. Trust in God is not about chance or luck; it’s about collaborating with God on the choices for my life…
Yep, well said. We are responsible for the consequences of actions and inactions, for what we have done and failed to do.