Daily Readings: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; 2 Samuel 7:23-29; John 3:31-36

“The one that God sent speaks God’s words. And don’t think he rations out the Spirit in bits and pieces. The Father loves the Son extravagantly. He turned everything over to him so he could give it away – a lavish distribution of gifts. That is why whoever accepts and trusts the Son gets in on everything, life complete and forever! And that is also why the person who avoids and distrusts the Son is in the dark and doesn’t see life. All he experiences of God is darkness, and an angry darkness at that. John 3:34-36, The Message

Trust vs. Mistrust. According to Erik Erikson, it’s the first major crisis we face as human beings. Are the people who care for me trustworthy? Is this world trustworthy? How an infant answers this question, yes or no, sets her on a path, sets the tone for the next seven stages of psycho-social development. (Childhood and Society, Erik Erikson; New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1993, original in 1950)

Do I trust God? Do I see in Jesus a God who is constant and trustworthy? Is the ground of my life solid? If I answer yes, then it becomes a gracious thing, an abundance given by God who loves me. If I answer no, then life becomes a trial, a punishment from a God who is angry with my inadequacy.

Trust or mistrust? Life hangs on the answer.