I've often been told that trust is an earned benefit that comes from experience with another. In other words, if I have no reason to trust in someone or something, then I will not freely hand out my loyalty or faith to them. However, I've been thinking about the whole premise of this very assumption.
A well known scripture found in Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV) states, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."
Ponder this with me for a moment. In reality, I have no immediate absolute premise on which to base my trust that I am suppose to give to God. On the contrary, the book of Hebrews says that faith (a well known synonym for trust) is believing without seeing: "sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see."
I have never physically heard, seen, touched, smelled, or to cover the five human senses, tasted (except for a freshly brewed cup of coffee, slice of butterscotch pie, or a hot Krispy Kreme glazed donut straight off of the line in the store: which I would argue all taste heavenly!).
Without faith or trust, it is impossible to please God or even have relationship with Him. But here in lies the beautiful irony of God. When God creates us, he creates us with what is called a "free will," meaning we can make up our own minds. We can choose to trust God or not, and God will completely respect our individual choices. So if we choose to trust God or place our active faith in Him, then we'll spend eternity with God in heaven. But if you choose not to trust God, then we will spend eternity away from Him in hell.
I said all of that to say this. Trust is a two-way street. God created you with your own mind and will which means He completely trusts you. Did you get that? God has given you complete authority over your own life! God never asks for more than what He has already given. He has given you His complete trust, so we should give him ours. God has given us His life, so we should give Him ours.
