Counting on my Catcher

Practice makes perfect--TRUST

Trapeze artists offer a beautiful image of trust. Flyers have to trust their catchers. They can do the most spectacular doubles, triples, or quadruples, but what finally makes their performance spectacular are the catchers who are there for them at the right time in the right place. Much of our lives is flying. It is wonderful to fly in the air free as a bird, but when God isn’t there to catch us, all our flying comes to nothing. Let us trust in the Great Catcher.     
Fr. Henri Nouwen

And God inspired Saint Paul to express it in this reassuring way:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 8:28, 38 – 39

Trust is a hard and difficult concept for me. Maybe it stems from my childhood or maybe from aging or being gun shy after many failures. Or maybe it is from my own reality as a person as I am learning, re-learning and unlearning many things about the life, the heart, faith and God.

Trust has to do with relying on the integrity of Someone or something, like when I drive across a bridge I trust that the structure will hold. But trust in the seen is a far cry different from trusting in the Unseen.

I trust Jesus, I do, but I am human and in my more humane moments, my trust is fragile, even in the face of evidence to contradict my lack of trust and faith. Time and time again God has shown himself in love and tenderness by meeting needs and pouring out Grace in my darker, more fragile moments.

Trust is indispensable to faith in Jesus. I must trust Jesus at his word, even though I cannot see him face to face in his bodily form. But with trust, I do see Jesus daily: in the eyes of wounded people facing their pain boldly and head on; in the distressing disguise of the poorest of the poor; in the sentient beauty of the mountains that surround my world; in my quiet moments. I do see the Word become flesh and in and around me daily.

Trust comes when I ask for the eyes to see in the dark, my own darkness to be precise, the glory of the Lord and his love.

Trust comes when I pray for wisdom and then without thunderbolts and lightening, I simply make a choice, trusting that God is working deeply in the midst of my choices, regardless of whether I see or feel God.

Trust comes when I take leaps of faith. It is knowing that when I risk all, one of three things will happen:
either I will be caught when I fall;
 I will sprout wings to fly;
 or I will not be broken if I land too hard.

Trust is accepting God's unconditional love. It is saying to God, “I know You love me, like no other, and You will always be there…You will never forsake me, even if I forsake myself.” Trust is knowing Jesus says to me daily, “I will never, ever, leave you or forsake you.”

                   Guest post from “Earthy-monk” (Excerpts)