Where are You Placing Your Spiritual Trust?

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

Knowledge is considered to be one of the key cornerstones of human advancement. Our interests may vary, but the pursuit of knowledge has propelled society forward, leading to some of the greatest inventions and some of the biggest scams. Nevertheless, we like knowledge. It’s a way to measure value. Unfortunately, we make the mistake of assigning greater importance to those who we see as more knowledgeable. We assess their achievements, their education, their perceived financial standings, and so many other external factors to determine value. This concept is troubling.

What’s even more troubling is that this same ideology creeps into the spiritual landscape. There are those who place misguided importance on people who they think have “special” spiritual insight. They want to know the future, how the world will end, and what they should do next. Fear amplifies this need. They question – will I miss out on signs of the times? Does a certain president mean something in particular? To know becomes an obsession, and when we become obsessed, we open ourselves up to false realities as we seek to gain control. We find connections where there are none and surround ourselves with others who believe the same. It’s dangerous. Why? Because it’s not that we aren’t seeking God, we’ve just stopped listening.

Spiritual Insight

When we think about our relationship with God, we should assess the concept of having “special” spiritual insight. I define this insight as an indication that God has revealed deeper knowledge and understanding of the future due to our connection with Him, that goes beyond normal/common understanding. We read about these experiences when we consider the Isaiah’s and Daniel’s of the Bible. We romanticize their journeys as we downplay their struggles while looking past their selfless commitment to spiritual growth. We aren’t as interested in the path to deeper insight as much as we are interested in having a “special” type of experience.

To do this, we sometimes look to those we believe have a deeper relationship with God. We rely on them so heavily that we stop fact-checking and seeking God for ourselves. Never forget, religion has often been a method of control and monetary gain. As hard as that may be to reckon with, we need to know that we can be manipulated, particularly as we grow closer to the coming of Christ. In Matthew 7:15, Jesus warns us about this as He says: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” There are those whose goal it is for us to create a dependency on them so that we support them with our worship, time, money, and recruitment of other individuals into the fold. If we think we are above being consumed by false prophets, our pride will put us at an increased risk of that actually happening.

Moreover, there are those who want to have this “special” spiritual insight because it makes them feel important. They like the idea of others coming to them for advice or being seen as spiritually “woke” or “prophetic”. Have you ever wanted to be seen as the source of spiritual knowledge? Proverbs 3:7 warns us – Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil. Narcissism and pride are rooted in evil. We can all fall victim to the desire to want to be important in the eyes of others. How we find purpose shouldn’t be rooted in how others define our value. Instead, our purpose should be rooted in God.

Being Rooted in God

When we’re truly rooted in God, we understand the source of understanding. In Proverbs 2:6-9, we read:

For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding; He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly; He guards the paths of justice, And preserves the way of His saints. Then you will understand righteousness and justice, Equity and every good path.

We stop trying to solve for what may be as we place our trust in God for what will be. If we don’t relinquish control to God, we will start worshipping false gods. We’ll chase after conspiracy theories, tie our emotions to political climates, or place our faith in religious leaders. Even on a more subtle level, we’ll lose faith in the power of God by limiting the possibilities of the outcomes. We will seek control because control will make us feel safe, even if it’s a false security. We’ll be afraid to speak up for what is right because we won’t have the strength to stand alone. We’ll even start to worship self, as we give way to pride and narcissism.

Many of us are going down some strange roads in the name of God, when we are actually serving Satan, by way of man. The choices we make now will contribute to our journeys and ultimately our standing with God. I would admonish each and every one of us to take a moment to reflect as to where we are truly placing our trust and our value. Is it in self or is it in God? To be rooted in God is to know that our outward actions are a reflection of His character and His will. We will go exactly where we need to be, because that’s where God intends for us to be. So let’s commit to strengthening our personal relationships with God. It’s the only way we break free of false insights and step into the light of God.