How to Trust God with Your WHOLE Heart {‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭5‬-‭6 Bible Study}

Do you ever wonder why someone of faith can also live a life that lacks the peace, clarity, and abundance the Bible promises to those who follow Christ? The answer is found in the subtle difference between having faith and acting on that faith. It’s called trust, and in today’s video, you’ll learn how to trust God with your whole heart to experience His power in your life, no matter what challenges you may be facing. Enjoy! 

Even as women of faith, if we’re completely honest, sometimes we just don’t trust God. It’s not because we don’t want to, but because for one, it’s hard. Two, we don’t want to release control, and three, we don’t really understand what it means to trust God or what it practically looks like to surrender to God in the real-life situations we face that are just as important as they are uncertain.

In today’s video, we’re studying Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭5‬-‭6 to learn:

• 🤝 What it really means to trust God.
• ❌ Why many of us think we’re trusting God when we’re really not.
• 💟 Practical steps you can take to trust God with your whole heart.

But first, we must understand the difference between faith and trust. Faith is a noun that means a belief or trust in God. Hebrews 11 describes faith as believing or hoping in something you can’t see or explicitly prove. 

Trust is also a noun, but it’s also a verb. It’s what you do with the faith that you have. That subtle difference between faith and trust is the reason why some Christians experience God much differently than others. It is why some people of faith walk in the abundant life Christ promised and others don’t. This is why Proverbs 3:5-6 instructs us to:

Trust in the Lord with All Your Heart

This verse makes me think of Peter walking on water. He first asks Jesus to call him out to the water so Jesus says “come.” Peter then believes and had faith in Jesus. But when he acted on that faith and literally lifted his foot up and out of the boat, He trusted Jesus. Trusting God isn’t just believe that He’s good and all powerful and that He loves you; it’s acting like it. Trust is the embodiment of your faith. 

Now I get it, we're afraid to trust.  We think if I actually act on this faith and step out, I might drown. This is why the scripture says trust in the Lord. Not what happened to you in the past, not your resources or your own capacity and ability. Trust must be in someone who is sure so that it will not fail us. God is sure. If we really want to trust God with our whole heart, we can’t think of Him like we think of everyone else. Numbers 23:19 says:

To grow your trust, we have to grow our knowledge of God, because He is who we’re putting our trust in, not people, not our circumstance, and not ourselves. 

Now one part of today’s verse that we must not miss is that we don’t only trust God, but we’re called to trust Him with our whole heart. Not doing so is why many fool themselves into thinking they trust God when they don’t. God is not looking for a partial trust where we trust Him with some things, but not all things. Where we trust Him with our finances, but not our marriage. Or trust Him with our kids, but not our health. Or trust Him to forgive our sins, but not to order our steps for the future.

Do Not Lean on Your Own Understanding

I want you to think of a trust fall. It’s where you stand in front of someone and you allow yourself to fall back to practice the art of trust, believing the person behind you will catch you. This activity is done to reinforce ones ability to trust. It shows that when I let go, when I surrender, when I fall back, I can expect to be caught. Today’s scripture is telling us not to lean on or fall on our own understanding. So then what are we to lean on? God’s truth, His promise, and His character. 

We don’t have to understand how everything will work out to trust God, because trust is not based on a perfect plan, or knowing what will happen. Trust is based on God, who He is, and His character. 

Our common mistake is feeling like we can’t trust God until everything is as expected, but that’s not faith, that’s not trust. Trust is acting on a faith that hopes in what you can’t see. But you don’t have to see in order to know that God is trustworthy. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says:

We don’t just believe, we actively walk in that belief. We act on that faith. Think about your actions. Do they align with someone who believes in God or someone who is acting on their own understanding?

If you’re at a crossroads today and you’re not sure which way to go, or you’re afraid to move forward where you know God is calling you, ask what would someone who completely trusts God do? Jesus serves as the perfect example for us to answer this question. This is why we follow His way. He’s the example we need to follow as someone who desires to trust God wholeheartedly because that’s exactly what He did even until death and now all authority has been given to Him as He reigns in Heaven with God. 

When Jesus prayed for God to take the cup of crucifixion from Him, He said not my will, but yours God. He didn’t lean on His own understanding, but trusted God.

Our greatest temptation when it comes to trusting God will be to lean on other things. We’ll want to lean on our trust in money, status, relationships, or more. These things aren’t bad in and of themselves, but we are not to lean on them or trust in them. Even when we don’t understand, we are to trust in God. Now this doesn’t mean we have an ignorant, blind faith. We’re not required to be stupid to trust God. It means we don’t have to know everything to know God will do what He said and be Who He promised no matter what. To lean on God, look at His track record. When has He failed? When has He forsaken His children? King David said:

We don’t trust God because we’re ignorant. We trust Him because He’s trustworthy.

Acknowledge Him in All Your Ways

So then we don’t just trust Him with all our heart; we also acknowledge Him in all our ways. The word acknowledge here means to know by experience, to perceive, or to recognize. As we see God in everything, we can trust Him with anything. Trust is very much what we do, but also what we choose not to do. It’s stepping back when we need to, to allow God to be God because we understand we can’t do anything apart from Him. It’s this level of humility where faith grows and trust is built because you can’t trust in God if your pride is in yourself. Proverbs 3:7 says:

It’s our trying to control, our trying to do it all on our own, our holding on when we need to let go that stops us from walking in faith and stepping out in sincere trust in God. It’s funny because in trying to control to get what we want to actually can do the opposite. It’s surrender to God that gets you into His perfect will for your life. Then it’s here that today's verse says He will direct our path. We want to know the path, we want to pave the way, but God does not call us to do any of that. He says trust me, and then He will do it. 

As the Apostle Paul shared about establishing churches, he said some water and some plants. There was work to do but then reminds us, that it’s God who brings the growth (1 Corinthians 3:6). We can’t do both our part and God’s. We do what we’re called and trust God to do His and guess what? He will. Thessalonians 5:24 says:

God’s call is to trust Him, and He will do it. How often do I get this backwards? I want to do it, or make it happen, I want to see it first and then I’ll trust, but that’s not how it works.

As we step out and walk in faith, we do so knowing as we do our part, God will surely do His. He will do it. He will make it happen. 

So what does all this look like practically? It looks like doing what God is calling you to do. You don’t have to do it all at once because you probably don’t even know all the steps, but what’s the next step. 

• If He’s called you to reconcile a relationship, pray about it and start to draft a message to reach out to them.
• If He’s calling you to write a book, open a Google doc and brainstorm all your ideas.
• If He’s calling you to move, start taking tours of new homes.

You don’t have to have it all figured out to trust God, but you do need to make a next move to truly walk in faith. So let me know, what’s the next step of faith you’re taking today and let’s encourage one another in the comments.

As you trust God by taking steps to live out your faith, I encourage you to hold on to His promises to keep you encouraged. Are you not sure what those promises are? Watch this video to learn 5 promises of God for women who trust God.

For more encouragement, download my free Bible Study called “Worry-Free” to learn the 3 lies feeding your worry and the truth to set you free at belovedwomen.org. Thanks for watching and until next time, be beautiful, be blessed, and beloved.