"The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; the God of my strength in whom I will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; My Savior, You save me from violence. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,  so shall I be saved from my enemies." 2 Samuel 22:2-4

"As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him." 2 Samuel 22:31

"He is the Rock, His ways are perfect; for all His ways are justice. A God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He." Deuteronomy 32:4

"A Father of the Fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His Holy habitation." Psalm 68:5

Trust. What is trust? In 2 Samuel 22:3, it is from the Hebrew word "chacah": "a prim. root; to flee for protection; fig. to confide in- have hope, make refuge, put trust."
Merriam-Webster defines it as the following:
-assured reliance on the character, ability, strength or truth of someone or something
-dependence on something future or contingent: HOPE

Trust. In what do we trust? Our marriages? Our ability to provide for our families? Our friends? Our homes as a place of comfort and shelter?

We trust that our car will start when we get in, and that we will make it from point A to point B. We trust that once we have our kids, they are ours forever. We trust that we will be around to raise them.

We trust that justice will prevail, that those thousands of pictures sitting in our hard drive will be there when we (finally) get around to printing them. We trust that our water is safe to drink, that manufacturers of baby toys know what they are doing, and that "happily ever after" comes as soon as that ring is slipped on that finger.

And then what? Reality. Marriages fail. Friends let you down. Cars break down. Homes can be destroyed. Children grow up, grow indifferent, or pass away. Parents pass away too young. The justice system fails people. Computers crash. Water gets tainted. Toys get recalled. People lose jobs. Health fails.

Why should we trust in ANYTHING?

None of those things are promised to us. None. We are not promised an easy life, or a trouble-free life, or a life spared from disappointment or despair. Life is not fair. We learn that early on.

We ARE promised that we have a God we can trust! We are not promised a "normal" family life, but we are promised a Heavenly Father who loves us ("A Father of the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy habitation." Psalm 68:5). We are not promised a trouble-free marriage, but we are promised that we are Beloved ("Let the beloved fo the Lord rest secure in Him, for He shields Him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between His shoulders" Deut. 33:12). We are not promised a steady income, but we are promised that our needs will be met ("And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, not have an anxious mind. For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you." Luke 12:29-31).  We are not assured of the faithfulness of people, but we are assured of the faithfulness of God  ("But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one." 2 Thessalonians 43:3). We are not promised that tragedies will not happen, but we are promised comfort. ("He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all the faces." Isaiah 25:8)

And we can take those promises to the bank, because God is a God who never fails. He has made those promises to us, and God is incapable of lying- or even being wrong. He has proven Himself to mankind time after time after time- the Bible, from beginning to end, is a story of God's redemptive work and power and faithfulness to the people He loves, a story that constantly proves itself to be true. Everything in the Old Testament, from the building of the temple to the lists of family trees, from the creation of man to the Exodus, from King David to the treachery and idol-worship running rampant,  is in preparation for the Messiah. Everything He does- whether we consider it good or bad- is evidence of His divine plan at work in the world. Everything in the New Testament is evidence of His love and faithfulness and desire to have everyone come to knowledge of the Truth- and the peace that comes from that. For better or for worse (in our opinions), God is trustworthy to do what He says He will do. He will love us ("For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God..." Romans 8:38-39), He will comfort us ("Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30), He will redeem us (For whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved." Joel 2:32), and He will, from now until the end of time, be with us ("Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10).

It reminds me of that song by Needtobreathe, "Washed by the Water".
"Even when the rains come, even when the flood starts rising, even when the storm comes, I am washed by the Water. Even when the earth crumbles under my feet, even when the ones I love turn around and crucify Me... I won't ever ever let you down." Love that song. And I love that it is true.

If you are going through something hard or terrible, God is trustworthy- you can trust Him that He will work it together for your good, that He cares, and that He loves you more than you could ever know- and that He knows firsthand what heartbreak is. You can trust Him with your anger- He can take it! You can trust Him with your sadness- He can comfort! You can trust him with Your doubts- He understands! You can trust him with your fears, your hurts, your past, present and future. You can trust Him.