We Trust Each Other

Wednesday, January 17, 2018

TRUST - confidence in someone’s character, ability, reliability, commitment, strength, or truth (definition mine)

When I was a girl, my parents told me that they would trust me as long as I proved to them that I could be trusted. If I broke that trust then it would take awhile to build it up again. I worked very hard to be trustworthy in their eyes because I respected them too much to let them down.

That kind of trustworthiness has spilled over into my marriage, my parenting, my friendships, and my working relationships.

In my estimation, the foundation of trust -- that solid structure upon which the building blocks of a relationship are laid -- is honesty.

• Let your "yes" be "yes" and your "no" be "no." (character, dependability)
• Mean what you say and say what you mean. (reliability, predictability)
• If you say you're going to do something, then do it. (reliability, commitment)
• Do what is right when no one is looking. (integrity)
• Make wise choices regarding right and wrong. (character)

For Bill and me, it is only natural for certain things to be involved in the building of trust (and, really, these can apply to all kinds of relationships).

• We love each other very much -- seems like that love gets deeper all the time. 
• We respect each other for who we are as individuals and we give each other the latitude needed to exercise our God-given talents.
• We communicate regarding the simple and the complicated. We take each other's feelings into account and we "play fair."
• We spend time together and we recognize the need for there to be time apart. 
• We extend common courtesies to each other -- another reflection of our love.
• We exercise self-control in our conversations and in our relationships with others.

Trust is important in any relationship. It is essential. Do you trust? Can you be trusted?

Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord.
Proverbs 16:20

Father, you have proven yourself to us throughout the years. We need but to model ourselves after you in order to develop trustworthiness in our lives. Help us to do it well.