Trusting Others

Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken tooth, and a foot out of joint.
Proverbs 25:19

I have never had a broken tooth but I have had sprained ankles, a broken right foot and a broken left leg. Each were painful, to varying degrees, but they were all cumbersome. Have you tried hobbling on crutches? If so, be careful of wet tile floors! (A different story for another day). You can not get anywhere in a hurry. Even with an electric scooter (tried it once in the grocery store with a broken leg - rather starve than try it again), maneuvering can be difficult. For one who is always on the go, it was so frustrating to be hampered from the most basic functions in life!

The same can be said of our frustrations when our trust in an individual is betrayed. We are frustrated at the outcome, angered at our judgement in trusting the individual and farther behind than we had hoped. Just as important, our doubt of others grows each time we are betrayed. It becomes harder to trust others with tasks or private, personal matters. Perhaps, we should just give up on trusting anyone?

Let's flip the scenario, how many times have you let down God? For me, it is more than I want to count! And yet, He still loves us and forgives us. Should we do the same to others? In fact, Jesus told us to forgive "seven times seventy" - has anyone truly let you down that many times? So let's bandage our broken leg and our emotions, and hobble forward. Our forgiveness of other's failures will allow the love of God to show through us to others.