Some psychologists say there are six basic emotions--anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise. Famous psychologist Robert Plutchik (1927-2006) once named eight, which he grouped into four pairs of polar opposite--joy-sadness, anger-fear, trust-distrust, surprise-anticipation.
One of the top themes heard today is how you can't trust anything anymore. You can't trust the news, the government, the schools, the corporations, the politicians, the media, the police, the judicial system, the food and water supply, the pharmaceuticals, on and on and on.
In the great old hymn from 1891, "My Faith Has Found a Resting Place," author Eliza Hewitt (a Philadelphia teacher who wrote many Christian poems in her convalescence after a boy she disciplined struck her in the back with a heavy slate, giving her a spinal malady that ended her career and made her a shut-in) boasts,
Thoro Harris, regarded as one of the most prolific African-American hymn writers of the early 20th century, reveals in his classic from 1931, All That Thrills my Soul, “He is more than life to me. And the fairest of ten thousand, In my blessed Lord I see . . . On His strength divine relying, He is all in all to me.”
The word “trust,” and forms of it appear in the King James Bible 191 times. David writes in Psalm 91, [2] I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
[3] Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
[4] He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
[3] Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
[4] He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
A favorite verse you often hear from the pulpit is Psalm 118:8: "It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man." Another favorite is in Proverbs 3: [5] Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
[6] In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
[6] In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
In one of the most-used verses in gospel-giving, Paul writes to the Ephesians: [13] In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
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Robert C. Solomon (1942-2007), a renowned American educator and philosopher and author of 40-plus books, had many thoughts about the nature of trust and how he believed “many people are blind to it.”
Solomon observes, in a compilation of quotes from him, “Trust is not bound up with knowledge so much as it is with freedom, the openness to the unknown . . . Trust opens up new and unimagined possibilities . . . True, trust necessarily carries with it uncertainties, but we must force ourselves to think about these uncertainties as possibilities and opportunities, not as liabilities. . . Trust is a skill learned over time so that, like a well-trained athlete, one makes the right moves, usually without much reflection.”
II Samuel 22 says, [29] For thou art my lamp, O LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness.
[30] For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall.
[31] As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him.
[32] For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God?
[33] God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect.
[34] He maketh my feet like hinds' feet: and setteth me upon my high places.
[35] He teacheth my hands to war; so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.
[36] Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy gentleness hath made me great.
[37] Thou hast enlarged my steps under me; so that my feet did not slip.”
[30] For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall.
[31] As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him.
[32] For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God?
[33] God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect.
[34] He maketh my feet like hinds' feet: and setteth me upon my high places.
[35] He teacheth my hands to war; so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.
[36] Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy gentleness hath made me great.
[37] Thou hast enlarged my steps under me; so that my feet did not slip.”
Regarding the trust one can and should place in God’s Word, Richard Jordan emphasizes, “When you come to a book that you can trust, instead of it disappointing you when you doubt it, you realize the problem was you, not it. You discover that as you keep studying it, you begin to trust it more and more.
"When you hear me talk about trusting the King James Bible, that’s not because I had some tradition to do that. That comes from 55 years of just reading it every day, studying it for what it is and letting it commend itself to me. I tell people all the time, ‘You should believe the bible you’re reading. You should let it tell you about itself.’ ”
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"When you hear me talk about trusting the King James Bible, that’s not because I had some tradition to do that. That comes from 55 years of just reading it every day, studying it for what it is and letting it commend itself to me. I tell people all the time, ‘You should believe the bible you’re reading. You should let it tell you about itself.’ ”
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Are there many themes more prominent in Christian hymns than trust and all associated with it? In the end, it's everything.
In the great old hymn from 1891, "My Faith Has Found a Resting Place," author Eliza Hewitt (a Philadelphia teacher who wrote many Christian poems in her convalescence after a boy she disciplined struck her in the back with a heavy slate, giving her a spinal malady that ended her career and made her a shut-in) boasts,
- My faith has found a resting place,
Not in device or creed;
I trust the ever-living One,
His wounds for me shall plead.- Refrain:
I need no other argument,
I need no other plea,
It is enough that Jesus died,
And that He died for me.
- Refrain:
- Enough for me that Jesus saves,
This ends my fear and doubt;
A sinful soul I came to Him,
He’ll never cast me out. - My heart is leaning on the Word,
The living Word of God,
Salvation by my Savior’s name,
Salvation through His blood.
According to a biography on Hewitt, "As an an invalid for an extended period, she developed a love of God and the Scriptures, and the hope of sharing with others in written form. She wrote Sunday School literature and children’s poems. She wrote a poem for her pastor during this time entitled 'Winning Souls for Jesus' and it was placed in the corner stone of Tabernacle Presbyterian Church of West Philadelphia.
"Her condition eventually improved and she was able to return to an active life in Christian ministry. She wrote 'There Is Sunshine in My Soul Today' after getting her body cast off and being allowed a walk in the nearby park, in thankfulness at the joy of being able to get about again. She was very committed to reaching children through Sunday Schools and attended the Methodist Camp meetings in Ocean Grove, New Jersey. She worked with the Methodist District Superintendant’s wife, Emily Wilson, on the hymn poem, 'When We All Get to Heaven.' "
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Thoro Harris, regarded as one of the most prolific African-American hymn writers of the early 20th century, reveals in his classic from 1931, All That Thrills my Soul, “He is more than life to me. And the fairest of ten thousand, In my blessed Lord I see . . . On His strength divine relying, He is all in all to me.”
Making Jesus everything, trusting in Him for our all, was a constant theme in Harris’ hundreds of Christian songs. In Hide Thou Me, He writes, “O what a Friend is Jesus sure anchor for my soul, So tender, true and gracious, I'm safe in His control.”
In another classic of his from 1914, More Abundantly, the refrain goes, “All from Him receiving,
Yield to Him your all; Jesus will accept you When to Him you flee; He will grant His blessing more abundantly.”
Yield to Him your all; Jesus will accept you When to Him you flee; He will grant His blessing more abundantly.”
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Minister Howard A. Walter (1883-1918) is the author of the hymn, "I Would Be True, For There are Those Who Trust Me." A book on hymn origins reveals, "In July of 1906 Walter was teaching English at Waseda University in Japan. He sent his mother a poem he had written called 'My Creed.' In the poem he expressed the feeling that motivated him as a Christian: 'I would be true, for there are those who trust me.'
"His mother was so impressed with the sincerity of the poem that she submitted it to the editors of Harper's Bazaar, who published it in 1907. Three years later it was seen by Joseph Peek who saw its possibilities as a hymn. Although a tune was running clearly in his mind, Peek was unfamiliar with the techniques of musical composition and got an organist friend to write it down while he whistled. 'I Would Be True,' one of the outstanding youth songs of all time, is one of the few hymns that mention the word 'laughter' as a Christian attribute."
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A great hymn from 1887, written by John Sammis, is "Trust and Obey." Of the hymn's origins, "The inspiration for this hymn began in 1886 when the composer of the music, Daniel B. Towner, was the music conductor during one of Dwight L. Moody’s renowned revivals. Towner offered the following testimony cited by Moody’s musical partner, Ira D. Sankey, in his biography, My Life and the Story of the Gospel Hymns:
“Mr. Moody was conducting a series of meetings in Brockton, Massachusetts, and I had the pleasure of singing for him there. One night a young man rose in a testimony meeting and said, ‘I am not quite sure—but I am going to trust, and I am going to obey.’ I just jotted that sentence down and sent it with a little story to the Rev. J. H. Sammis, a Presbyterian minister. He wrote the hymn, and the tune was born.”
Minister Howard A. Walter (1883-1918) is the author of the hymn, "I Would Be True, For There are Those Who Trust Me." A book on hymn origins reveals, "In July of 1906 Walter was teaching English at Waseda University in Japan. He sent his mother a poem he had written called 'My Creed.' In the poem he expressed the feeling that motivated him as a Christian: 'I would be true, for there are those who trust me.'
"His mother was so impressed with the sincerity of the poem that she submitted it to the editors of Harper's Bazaar, who published it in 1907. Three years later it was seen by Joseph Peek who saw its possibilities as a hymn. Although a tune was running clearly in his mind, Peek was unfamiliar with the techniques of musical composition and got an organist friend to write it down while he whistled. 'I Would Be True,' one of the outstanding youth songs of all time, is one of the few hymns that mention the word 'laughter' as a Christian attribute."
*****
A great hymn from 1887, written by John Sammis, is "Trust and Obey." Of the hymn's origins, "The inspiration for this hymn began in 1886 when the composer of the music, Daniel B. Towner, was the music conductor during one of Dwight L. Moody’s renowned revivals. Towner offered the following testimony cited by Moody’s musical partner, Ira D. Sankey, in his biography, My Life and the Story of the Gospel Hymns:
“Mr. Moody was conducting a series of meetings in Brockton, Massachusetts, and I had the pleasure of singing for him there. One night a young man rose in a testimony meeting and said, ‘I am not quite sure—but I am going to trust, and I am going to obey.’ I just jotted that sentence down and sent it with a little story to the Rev. J. H. Sammis, a Presbyterian minister. He wrote the hymn, and the tune was born.”
The lyrics are:
- When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.- Refrain:
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
- Refrain:
- Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt or a fear, not a sigh or a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey. - Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share,
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross,
But is blessed if we trust and obey. - But we never can prove the delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favor He shows, for the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey. - Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at His feet,
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way;
What He says we will do, where He sends we will go;
Never fear, only trust and obey.
(new article tomorrow)
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