Psalm 25:1-3
In You I Trust
“To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous” Psalm 25:1-3
Trust is said to be as rare and valuable as gold — once lost or damaged, it is not easily earned back or repaired. Trust can be as delicate as a flower — needing nurture and watchful care to flourish. Trust may serve as the adhesive for which things may be bound and joined, creating something new and preserving it together. Trust can grow to be as sturdy as an oak — with the potential to build bridges, homes, families, and communities. Dynamic trust is like the wind of a sail — producing the needed force to inspire movement toward a common goal or destination. Trust could soften the contemptuous soul with consistent love or harden the most tender heart with unexpected betrayal. Trust may slowly hemorrhage with every disappointment and broken promise, or shatter like glass with a simple thoughtless word of gossip. Trust allows vulnerability, while suspicion pushes away. Our ability to trust others is fragile and finicky, often fluctuating.
I’m sure we have all encountered notably trustworthy and untrustworthy individuals. Now, what exactly makes someone worthy of trust? A few characteristics come to mind: consistency, integrity, competence, compassion, kindness, generosity, authenticity, respect for others, good stewardship, availability, humility, and vigilance of the tongue. Watch how they treat others. Observe how they spend their time and resources. Listen to how they communicate or notice how they refuse to do so. Trust will naturally grow while spending time with a trustworthy individual. Yet, even the most trustworthy person is sure to disappoint.
What kind of things do we naturally put our trust in? What sources of comfort and counsel might we be tempted to “lift up our souls” (v. 1) to instead of God? While journeying on the path marked out before us, we need God-given wisdom and an enduring foundation which we may trust upon to persevere in the faith.
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“To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul, O my God, in you I trust” v.1
Before David brings his requests in Psalm 25, he first “lifts up” his soul to God, declaring trust in Him alone. Not trust in the hidden idols of his heart, any false refuge of comfort, or the wisdom of the world. He uses the title: “LORD”, bringing afresh the reminder of God as the great I AM of Exodus 3. David’s response to his hardship was not passive despair, but the active “lifting up” of his soul in prayer and conscious relinquishment of his own understanding, plans, and desires.
Have you ever considered the sobering thought that every individual you have ever met has a soul? The first mention of the term, “soul“, is in Genesis chapter 2 — when God breathed into man the breath of life (Gen 2:7). In Psalm 139, we learn that our souls have been formed, knitted, and woven by God then placed in our mother’s womb (Ps 139:13-16). Who else is worthy of such trust with our inmost being, than the one who formed it with such care, love, and purpose?
Most urgently, our souls are in need of redemption, for “all have fallen short of the glory of God, there is none who seeks him, not even one“. It is Jesus alone who came to ransom souls to himself by his perfect blood, atoning for sin once for all who are being sanctified (Hebrews 10:14). He alone saves, restores (Ps 23:3), protects (Ps 121:7), satisfies (Ps 107:9), and keeps our souls (Ps 121:7). Who else is worthy of such trust in guiding us on the path of life than the one who has secured us to himself eternally and cares for our souls so wholly?
But, does the idea of trusting God still make you feel anxious? When the rocky terrain or crossroads of life appear, do you grasp after any vaporous sense of control or understanding while you wait upon a specific, desired outcome? Or maybe, trust feels foreign to you — for you have never understood the need to trust anyone. “Afterall”, you think: “I have always gotten by fine on my own. I do not naturally depend on others, and I start to feel uncomfortable when others depend so much on me”. You tend to look inward for guidance and think yourself wise in your own eyes — discerning the best path according to the counsel of YOUR will. Perhaps, you have experienced the painful consequences of placing trust in someone, only to be deeply wounded. The idea of trust feels foreboding, laborious, even impossible as you vigilantly guard your own heart. You naturally dismiss, shut down, and laugh at any potential for hope. You feel hesitant to follow your Shepherd through this darkness — anticipating pain and expecting abandonment. As David, you honestly voice your fear of “being put to shame” for putting your trust in God.
Trust is uncomfortable because it requires faith. Faith in what is unseen as you wait upon Him. Thankfully, God has given us His very words which are “a lamp to our feet and a light to our path” (Ps 119:105). Hiding the promises of God in our hearts and growing in the knowledge of Him will strengthen your trust. As Charles Spurgeon said, “God is too good to be unkind, too wise to be mistaken; and when you cannot trace His hand you can trust His heart.” Our God is not a shifting shadow due to change. He is the sun — and the sun is never in the shadow. At times the shadow may fall on our path, but he is ever our inexhaustible, perfect, guiding light.
Lastly, in these verses, David preaches to his own soul the truth that none who wait for God will be put to shame. He distinguishes himself from those who will be put to shame: the “treacherous” — those who are guilty of putting trust in themselves and deciding right and wrong in their own eyes. God’s word says that those who trust in themselves are like the shrubs of the desert (Jeremiah 17:5-7). Their abode is a barren wilderness and parched wasteland. Their path will ultimately lead to destruction.
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When I consider David’s life, his path was full of uncertainties and opportunities to display profound trust in God to act for him. He faced plots against his life, the murderous jealousy of his father-in-law, war with God’s enemies, wilderness wanderings, waiting upon his anointing as king of Israel, the weight of his own guilt and consequences of his sin, familial conflict and conspiracy for the throne, betrayal, famine and disease within the kingdom, and the unfinished building projects he left to his son’s reign following his death. Through all this, God strengthened David to continue declaring trust in Him alone.
With this, let us not lean on the unstable crutch of our own understanding — but entrust our souls to a faithful God who promises to act for those who wait for him, keep our minds in perfect peace, and make straight our paths.
Truly, the Shepherd who leads you is trustworthy.