trust

A Test of Trust and Loyalty

Dr. Mike 2026, Life Tools , , , , , ,

“The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the Lord tests hearts.” Proverbs 17:3

What does God want from you and me now in life? Why does HE test our hearts? What is he testing us for? Does HE want us simply to follow the rules and religious ways given to us? Or is there more?

How about those two important characteristics – trust and loyalty.

Is not trust the anchor of relationships? Is not loyalty the glue of organizational accomplishments? Are not both the heartbeat of God’s desire for you and me?

Are not both trust and loyalty expressed through the faith we exercise with Jesus? Are they not the byproduct of faith in action?

Throughout Scripture, people are always being tested by God. HE wants to confirm and also for us to know the condition of our hearts. It started with Adam and Eve. One test. One very noticeable failure. Abraham was tested. Would he sacrifice his one and only son. Moses was tested. Would he face Pharaoh on behalf of Yahweh. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were tested. They would rather die than disobey their Lord. Saul was tested as king of Israel. He failed. David was tested for thirteen years before he replaced Saul as king.

Jesus was even tested in the wilderness. He could have had all his earthly desires fulfilled without trusting God’s timeline. But HE chose to wait and live out HIS Father’s will. Peter was tested and failed three times when he denied Jesus. But God’s grace empowered him when he repented with Jesus on that beach after the resurrection. Judas also was tested and failed. Rather than repent, he chose the cowardly way out of the situation and hung himself.

There are many other examples.

At the end of the day, it’s not what you know nor what you even do. Instead, can God trust you? As an agent of HIS, can HE send you to the furthest corner of the universe and know you will do what is best per HIS character? If the enemy makes an enticing offer to you, will you accept or be loyal to HIM?

Trust and loyalty are character strengths that are verified through battle. Each battle is a test. Each day when temptation comes to break the trust you and HE have developed; do you go the way of Judas or Jesus? When the adversary makes you an offer to join his side of the campaign, do you sell your loyalty for personal gain?

Yes, your faith is being tested each day. Every day you are either strengthening your relationship with Jesus or not. Like a marriage for life, you commit to make the relationship work. You do not enter situations that may endanger the trust you have built with your Lover. You may not like everything about the situation you are in, but you also know you are in good hands.

You have a relationship with the Lord of Lords. It doesn’t get any better than that. His grace is sufficient to help us hang unto HIM. Everything else is secondary no matter how well package or marketed to you. Let your loyalty and trust always be only in the God-Man from Galilee.

Make HIM your spiritual sole mate and your soul and spirit will prosper. Let your trust and loyalty be found solely in HIM and nothing else.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Faith-Integrator, Encourager, Scribbler

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Who Do You Trust?

Dr. Mike Business & Faith, Kingdom Paradigms , ,
“The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.” Psalms 28:7 NIV.

trust 1

The best marketing tool any person or organization has at their disposal is available to all. It doesn’t require a college degree, large capital investments, nor a unique sales strategy. It is as old as the universe, but as young as a new born baby. When employed it saves time, paperwork, and builds strong relationships for a life time. It is a five letter word that needs to be exercised in every conversation and repeated out loud when negotiations seem to be falling apart.

That word is TRUST.

Trust is becoming a rare commodity in today’s world. We have witnessed the disintegration of the marriage relationship; the hostility between races; and the ineffectiveness of governments around the world. Whenever trust is broken, lives are shaken. Dreams are dismantled. Both parties become losers – some in the short term, others in the long term.

Former president Ronald Reagan is given credit for resurrecting the phrase “Trust but verify.” Maybe we all need to practice this concept more often with the people in our world.  In fact, maybe we need to first begin the process with the Creator of the universe. Do we truly Trust Him?

His #1 seller the Bible provides multiple scriptures of the relationship between Him and His people and the importance of Trust. There are a multiple of scriptures where God wants us to trust him. And how do we learn to trust Him? One way is simply to put Him to the test. For starters, don’t ask him for something to spend it on yourself (James 4:3). Instead ask for the sake of others. Learn to lean on Him. Take baby steps. Ask, Seek, Knock (Luke 11:9-10).

Trust is built over time. It is two people coming together and first agreeing on the primary principle of the matter. From there, the talk is verified with action. The action leads to more talk. More talk leads to more action steps. Trust is slowly built after both sides verify each other’s action and witness the true character of the other person. When the real character appears, only then can we know how far we can truly rely on the other person’s words and actions.

So no matter if it’s a business matter, a family matter, or a governmental matter,  trust is the glue that strengthens, magnifies, and unleashes the potential in all relationships. Let trust be your friend today.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Executive Director & Founder
Marketplace Bible Institute
& Resource Center, Inc
Author of e-Books:
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

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Who Do You Trust?

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , , , , ,

Trust is built within relationships. Without relationships, trust wouldn’t matter. Trust is important because it brings two or more parties together toward a mutual destination.
If you ever been on a team, or served in the armed forces, than you know the importance of building trust among others. If you are in a serious relationship, husband/wife, parent/child, or employer/employee, than you also have tasted the fruit of trust. The fruit may have tasted sour or spoiled at times, yet in between we have also tasted the sweetness of a trustful relationship. Most likely there is or was one person in your life that allowed you to experience the savory joy of trusting another. However, during that time there were probably many others that caused you to distrust and keep others at an arm’s distance away from the heart.
For most of us, learning to trust our Triune God is a time investment that requires commitment and obedience without focusing on immediate results. The Book of Hebrews (Chpt. 11) summarizes many people of the faith journey who held on in trust of God without receiving a reward in this bodily life. In fact, many of them lost everything including their life in a hideous manner. Yet they trusted God to the very end.
When someone asks me today how do I measure success in this life, my reply is one word: Trust. Real success is not how much toys one accumulates in this life; it is not how famous or important one becomes in the eye of others; it is not experiencing life’s good things like a blessed marriage, career, or meaningful relationships. At the end of our life, Jesus is going to review our relationship with Him. Our life is either going to exemplify trust in our self or in Him. He is simply going to evaluate through the trails, tests, and moments of truth how much we trusted Him, sought Him, and followed Him. He will accordingly reward us. He is also going to measure how well we submitted to the Holy Spirit’s lead in our life, and likewise reward us. Yes we are saved by Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. However, the Bible also teaches that we are rewarded by how much we maturely grow in our daily interaction with each other and with Christ.
So the next time someone asks you how do you measure success in life, let your answer always humbly remain the same: Trust in Jesus Christ.

OUR PRAYER

PRAY 8

Our Heavenly Father, Son, and Spirit: thank you for committing yourself to our redemption. Help us to partner with you in following you in your work and in your plan to restore creation back to your original intent. Help us in our vain attempt to trust you. Shower upon us your steadfast love so we may experience and build a deep, trusting relationship with you. Help us to invest the day with you in everything we do. From arising, breakfast, commuting, work, lunch, gym, school, dinner, and playtime, help me to live in your presence and look for what you are doing in our little world.
Help us to help others in learning to trust you in everything we do. Amen. Amen.