32 In spite of all this, they sinned still more, for they believed not in (relied not on and adhered not to Him for) His wondrous works.

33 Therefore their days He consumed like a breath [in emptiness, falsity, and futility] and their years in terror and sudden haste. – Psalm 78:32-33, Amplified Bible (AMP)

I have a friend named Dan who taught a wonderful Sunday School lesson to our class recently. At the beginning of the lesson, he drew a simple image that looked like this:

After drawing the picture, he made the point that faith, as many people define it (i.e., a mental acknowledgment that some fact or some person is real), is not true faith. True faith has trust intertwined with it.  As a result of the trust component of our faith, we tend to rely on, to adhere to, and to act on the object of our faith. If we don’t act on the object of our faith – if we don’t let the object of our faith guide our behaviors – then our “faith” isn’t really faith at all. It’s just great knowledge, which has little or no impact on our lives.

When it comes to faith in Christ, Dan made the point that the two “t’s” in “trust” represent two crosses. In the middle “r us,” or you and me. Those who truly trust Christ as Lord of their lives wrap themselves with God’s promises. As a result, they have perfect peace because their minds are stayed on God.  Those who fail to surround themselves with God’s promises find themselves fighting life’s battles alone, and they “remain under stress” – R.U.S. – as a result of doing so.

There is no better biblical example of this contrast than the difference between David’s words in Psalm 131:1-2 and Asaph’s words in Psalm 78:32-33. In Psalm 131, we have a king who has cast all of his cares upon God (verse 1). In return, the king possesses a calm and quiet soul (verse 2).  In Psalm 78 we have a people who have faith in themselves and in idols rather than God. As a result, they live out their days in stress, terror, and haste. The sole difference between rest and terror? The object of faith.

Who do you trust? I’m not asking, “Who do you say that you trust?” I want to know who do your actions, your state of mind, and your level of peace say that you trust? Your actions, your state of mind, and your level of peace betray the true answer to my question. If you are not going about the work God has told you to do; if you are constantly thinking about the cares of this world; and, if your heart is filled with anxiety rather than peace, then guess what? God is NOT the object of your faith. You are trusting in someone else – yourself – and until you change the object of your faith, you will Remain Under Stress!