Misplaced Trust
Scripture:
“In my distress I prayed to the Lord,
and the Lord answered me and set me free.
The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me?
Yes, the Lord is for me; he will help me.
I will look in triumph at those who hate me.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in people.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in princes.”
—Psalm 118:5–9 (NLT)
The psalmist does not tell us what brought him to his knees. We don’t know the details of his distress, the face of the opposition, or the shape of the threat. What we know is what he did with it. He prayed. And God answered. That is the testimony at the center of this passage, and it is not a small one. The God of the universe heard one person’s cry and moved on their behalf. He set them free. That is who we are dealing with when we pray.
And from that place of answered prayer, the psalmist draws a conclusion that cuts against everything our instincts tell us. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in people. Better than trusting princes, better than trusting systems, better than leaning on the strength of whoever seems most powerful in the moment. This is not a call to suspicion or isolation. We are meant to live in community, to trust one another, to lean on those God places in our lives. But our ultimate confidence cannot rest there. People fail. Leaders disappoint. Institutions that seemed immovable can crack overnight. And when they do, those who built their security on them find themselves with nothing to stand on.
“Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”¹ — Corrie ten Boom, Clippings from My Notebook
Corrie ten Boom knew what it meant to watch everything she trusted in this world collapse. During World War II, she and her family hid Jewish refugees in their home in Haarlem, Netherlands, until they were betrayed and arrested by the Gestapo. Her father died in prison within days of his arrest. Her sister Betsie died in the Ravensbrück concentration camp. Corrie survived, but she emerged from that darkness not with bitterness toward God, but with a deeper certainty in Him. She had seen what happens when human power is trusted absolutely. She had also seen what happens when God is. And what she discovered is what the psalmist discovered long before her. The peace that holds when everything else gives way is not the peace of certainty about what comes next. It is the peace of knowing the One who holds what comes next.
He heard the psalmist. He hears you. He is for you, not against you. And when our trust is rooted in Him rather than in the shifting ground of human strength, we find ourselves standing on something that does not move.
Reflection:
- What does it look like for you to take refuge in the Lord rather than trusting in people or systems?
- Are there areas of your life where fear has quietly displaced faith?
- How can you grow in a consistent, honest prayer life, not just in moments of distress, but daily?
Prayer:
Thank God that He hears and responds when you call out to Him. Ask Him to help you release fear and replace it with faith, and pray for a trust that is rooted in Him alone rather than in anything this world can offer.
Footnote: ¹ Corrie ten Boom, Clippings from My Notebook (Christians Incorporated, 1983), 29.