Have you found yourself in a season where it feels dark? Confusing? Not sure what to do next? You are not alone.
One of the most famous Scripture verses is Proverbs 3:5-6, and I have been meditating and praying this in my own life.
“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.”
The Hebrew word for “trust” in this verse is “bāṭaḥ” (בָּטַח). It means “to hie for refuge, to confide in any one, to set one’s hope in, to be confident.”
As I was studying this word, I came across the Arabic word for trust and its beautiful, eye-opening definition:
”to throw one down upon his face,” or “to throw one down on his back”
What a picture. What a posture! This definition paints a picture of how we can posture ourselves as we set our hope and confidence in Him.
Complete and total surrender.
To Throw One Down Upon His Face
One of my favorite books is How to Worship a King by Zach Neese. In this book, Pastor Zach teaches about the Greek word most often translated for worship, proskuneo (προσκυνέω), which means “to kiss, make obeisance, reverence” or to “lie prostrate, adore.” In reverence and adoration of the LORD, we can posture ourselves before Him in such a way that demonstrates our love, affection, and acknowledgement of His Kingship and worthiness.
Back to Proverbs 3:6, we are told that in all our ways (not just some of them), we are to acknowledge Him. We acknowledge Him with trust, with complete surrender, with worship.
“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.”
John 4:23
To Throw One Down Upon His Back
When I was younger, my dad, sisters, and I loved to wrestle and have pillow fights! Our dad would throw us on the bed and we would jump and tackle him with all our might! He would lift us up and throw us on our back on the bed. What sweet memories! I think how to this day my nieces even love to be “crashed” (a gentle toss into the pillows on Papa Gigi’s bed). In those moments, when I was on my back, I was exhausted from wrestling! I would have to pause and take it in. My dad is stronger than me! I can wrestle with him all I want, but I am not going to overpower him.
How often do we find ourselves wrestling with God? It’s not a bad thing to wrestle with God, in fact, I think He initiates it! He woos us to Himself, and in that - the wrestle. In Genesis 32, Jacob wrestles with God! And his name is changed to Israel which means “to wrestle with God.” So, it’s not a bad thing. I think it’s wise to know that we are invited to the wrestle, but at the end of the day, our Father (our Dad, our Abba) is stronger than us! We end up on our back. And in that, His face isn’t disappointed in us; His face can shine upon us when we look upon Him. Numbers 6 contains the Aaronic Blessing, a prayer that was spoken over the people, “The LORD bless you and keep, may He make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you…” It can be difficult for us to see His face shining upon us if we aren’t facing Him. Posturing ourselves before Him. Looking and beholding Him. Laying on your back, perhaps a little exhausted from the wrestle, but taking a deep breath and knowing, "my Dad is strong. He will take care of me." You can rest in Him.
“Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.”
Psalm 34:5
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So, maybe you are in that season right now and you are doing everything you can to trust Him with your decisions, your path forward, your life. Take a deep breath. I encourage and challenge you to posture your heart in total surrender, worship, and in rest. This is what trust looks like. Acknowledge Him, His Kingship and worthiness. Don’t shy away from the wrestle, but rest in knowing that He will make your paths straight. He is before you and behind you. He is with you. And let His warm, radiant love and face shine upon you. You can rest in Him. You can trust Him, for He is faithful. He is worthy of trust.
Will you posture your heart to trust Him today?
A Prayer
Dear God, we thank You!
Thank You for this season that is drawing us closer to Your heart. We admit, LORD, it can be challenging to have vision for what is next when it’s dark and we don’t see what is to come. We posture our hearts to trust you in total surrender. We worship and acknowledge You. Help us to hear Your voice. Silence every fear, every what-if and worry that robs us of Your peace. We refuse to take control and choose to trust You. Woo us to You in the wrestle with You! You are a God of clarity and not confusion, a God of peace and not chaos! We can trust You. Thank You that Your face shines upon us, and we choose to rest in this comforting truth. When we look to You, we are radiant and transformed by Your love. We know your ways and thoughts are higher than ours, but we ask for Your Presence and Truth to comfort us in the waiting and give us wisdom for what is next. Though the future feels dim and daunting, when we look upon you, we can confidently trust and know that You are with us and that You will lead us step by step, making our paths straight. Thank You, God.
In Jesus’ Name, Amen!
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