Babies are the perfect example of trust. Notice how a baby stretched out his arms the moment his parents entered the room. Without hesitation, he smiles beautifully, kicks his legs and leans forward as if he had no doubt she would hold him.
Whenever I find myself in this scenario, it always reminds me of something profound. It is natural for us to trust without doubt when we are younger. Have you ever seen a baby question whether their parent will drop them? No, this is because they believe that they are safe.
But as we grow, everything starts to change. The trust we had so easily then starts to get complicated. It is at that point we ask: Who can I trust? Who can I rely on? Who will truly keep their words and not break them? And ultimately, to whom should I confide my deepest secret?
Trust is the foundation of relationships, and it is one of the most powerful forces that shape the success of such relationships. This is because trust allows you to be vulnerable and want to open up to the other person without having to defensively protect yourself.
From the moment we take our first breath to making decisions as adults, trust shapes how we view the world, how we relate to others and how we navigate the uncertainties life brings at our doors. But we wouldn't continue without asking the same common question: Who do we really trust?
The Trust of a Newborn
It's so amazing to see a baby come into the world with no words, no plans, no certainty, yet they have complete trust. They don't have to worry about anything, but simply depend entirely on the adult whose responsibility it is to care for them. They are certain they would be fed, carried and kept warm, making sure they are always protected. Their trust is 100% firm. This is how their innocence of trust plays out in its rawest form.
Moving on to the Adolescent Shift…
As babies grow into adolescence, the trust begins to shift. This is the stage where they come up with questions, demanding answers from adults, making choices for themselves, observing and learning who is trustworthy and who isn't.
It is at this stage that they start to realise that not everyone keeps to their promises and that not all relationships are reliable. Trust becomes selective. It becomes something that is earned and not given freely.
The next question begins at Adulthood: Who Do You Trust More?
This is the stage where our experiences shape how much and whom we trust. Some adults put their trust in friends, some in family, some in mentors or even in their wealth and achievement.
But as we move on, we get to taste the disappointment and betrayal in life because no matter how much we believe in people, they can disappoint us when we least expect it. Even systems and successes we rely on fail, too. And there's the tough question: Where should our deepest trust rest?
The Awakening: The Only One To Be Trusted
It gets to a certain point in one's life that they realise that the greatest one to trust is their Creator. Human beings may falter. This is because the scripture likens us to grass that fades away, and we can't definitely put all our trust in humans.
But the Creator remains unchanging. Scriptures remind us that it is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man, also that woe unto the one who puts his trust in man. This awakening then shifts our perspective from relying on the visible to the invisible, who is our Creator.
How much should we trust God who created and sustains the universe? The answer isn't far-fetched: with everything. Just because we trust God doesn't guarantee a challenge-free life, but we are assured of never being alone in the journey. It only means that we shouldn't lean on our own understanding but on God's wisdom, guidance, and perfect timing.
The Opposite Side of Trust
The effects of a broken trust can be devastating. It leads to betrayal, which causes pain, loss of confidence and sometimes fear of ever trusting again. A broken trust makes a person feel insecure and isolate themselves, and this can become a bigger issue in relationships, communities or even in leadership roles where disunity occurs and we know the result of that. A life without trust is like walking in darkness, not certain of what will happen.
In conclusion, our understanding of trust takes a new turn as we move from childhood to adulthood. This is because people may fail us and circumstances may shake us, but the Creator remains a firm foundation.
If your answer to who you trust is in people, remember, they are limited, and if it is in God, you have placed your trust in an unlimited one, and that is where true peace comes from, where we trust not in what we see but in the one who sees everything going on in our lives.
Images Source: Meta AI
