Trust What?

It was just a dictation.
My son's Language Arts curriculum uses a dictation exercise each week.
There is usually two from the novel he is reading and two from scriptures that apply to the theme currently going on in his novel.
Much to his dismay, his novel is Pride and Prejudice.

What can you expect, he is a 15yo guy!

The two scriptures were both familiar ones from Proverbs and 1Corinthians.
When I do a dictation, I read it completely through, then I read sentence by sentence, then I read it through one last time in its entirety.

It was on the second time through that I was Gibbs smacked upside my head by the Holy Spirit.

This was the passage:
1 Corinthians 13

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

It was here that the Holy Spirit Gibb slapped the back of my head:

always trusts

Really? ALWAYS? TRUSTS?
But always trusts WHAT?
Or better yet, WHO?

And what about those who have violated my trust.
How about that person who has cheated me and done me wrong?
Then there is that one person who is seeking to destroy me life.

Whew, surely God does not mean them after all, those people are my enemies.
I can get to where I can love and trust my friends, and MOST of my family, but those others, I should be ok not trusting them, because they have not earned my trust, or have lost it.

Right?

Matthew 5

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?

OUCH! Gibbs slapped one more time!


Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.

I see the word LOVE. The Corinthians passage above says love always trusts.
The Matthew passage says to love your enemy.

As I look at these two passages, I will readily admit, I am struggling.
I can come up with numerous reasons to explain away the command to love and trust someone who has hurt me.
I can even find some Scripture, (Taken out of context) to back up my RIGHT to not trust someone.
But, I cannot get away from the fact I am called to love my enemies, and truly loving my enemies must include trust because , "Love always trusts".

I am wrestling with God on this one.

I understand what God wants me to do, now to trust that the Holy Spirit to teach my heart how to do this!

Chasing After Hearts,
Glenda Johnson