Trust

I'm in the middle of reading a book by Jerry Bridges called Trusting God. It is very good, yet simple, which I like. It covers much about his belief and the Bible's proofs that God is sovereign over all things including health, nature, government (do we ever need that!), nations, and personal lives. It has made me think much over what we refer to as "chance" and what is really God working in everything. Even in the rough times of life, we can trust in what Jeremiah says, "For I know the plans that I have for you,... plans for welfare and not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope." (NASB) Through good and bad (which is what we are usually more concerned with), God is there; still good, still in control, still actively working out His will and desire for us. I was reading some other blogs about this same topic (so I can't take full credit for these thoughts), and they got me to thinking more about this, and it's neat to see how all different types of Christians can come to the same conclusions about God. And it's just by reading what His Word says. I like that I can challenge my youth group to not only fully put their trust and life in God's hands, but to know that He is actively working in them even now. I was counseling just the other day with someone who is struggling with cutting and thoughts of suicide. They need to know that God has a plan for their life and He is working and preparing them even in their "life crisis" and emotional pain they are going through now. Teens today unfortunately don't think about their future and what God has for them, they are concerned only with now. If they do think about the future it's only about what job they want to have to make the most money they can to have the most toys and stuff they can. If we could only point them to God's omniscience that ties together with his absolute love and mercy He has for us, which equals His sovereignty in our lives. But that requires trust which is a subject many teens, and adults, come far from truly understanding or even thinking about.