Work or Trust?

Trust in him at all times. (Psalm 62:8)

We often speak of “letting the Lord live His life through me.” I’m personally uncomfortable with this expression because it suggests a passivity on our part. He doesn’t live His life through me. Rather, as I depend on Him, He enables me to live a life pleasing to Him. Some years ago when I was following this more passive approach, which seemed more spiritual to me at the time, I was struggling to love a Christian brother. One evening God really dealt with me about my lack of love, and I sensed God saying to me, “If I love him, can you?” I responded, “Lord, I can’t, but I’m willing for You to love him through me.” What happened? Over time my attitude toward this brother did change. In fact, we became good friends. Did Jesus then love him through me? No, He enabled me to love the man. We are not passive in the pursuit of holiness. We are the ones who love. We are the ones who clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience (Colossians 3:12). But we do this in utter dependence on Him who gives us strength. Some would say that God’s part is to work, man’s part is to trust, and that the believer can do nothing but trust. But this idea that we can do nothing but trust is particularly troubling to me. I believe the psalmist and Nehemiah and Paul would say, “Man’s part is to trust and work. God’s part is to enable the man or woman to do the work.” Or perhaps it’s more helpful to say, “Our part is to work, but to do so in reliance upon God to enable us to work.”