I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (Eccl. 1:14)
In 1887 at a meeting held by Dwight Moody, a young man stood to share his story. As he was speaking, it became clear that he knew little about the Bible, but his closing lines were enough to grab a songwriter’s attention. The young man simply stated, “I’m not quite sure. But I’m going to trust, and I’m going to obey.”
Songwriter Daniel Towner was so struck by the power of those simple words that he quickly jotted them down and then delivered them to John Sammis, who developed the lyrics: “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.”
Similarly, Roger Staubach, who led the Dallas Cowboys to two Super Bowl championships, admitted that being a quarterback who didn’t call his own plays was a source of trial for him. Pride said that he should be able to run his own plays. Roger would later comment, “I faced up to the issue of obedience. Once I learned to obey there was harmony, fulfillment, and victory.”
As humans, we tend to believe in the power of our own wisdom. “I know what I am doing! I’ve been around the block,” we say. The key to a meaningful life, though, is not trusting in our own wisdom but trusting in the wisdom of God.
Acknowledge to God that there is no better way than to trust and obey Him.
Mark J. Musser is a pastor at Trinity Wesleyan Church in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He lives with his wife and teenage son.
