John Will Voss and I were sloshing around the swampy environs of Deepstep Creek. We came to something of an impasse at a rivulet too wide to step across. There were two Tupelo Poplar saplings in the middle of the rivulet about two feet out; swamp grass clumped around them. They seemed to offer possible stepping places for crossing the rivulet. John Will said, “Wait! Let’s check to see if we can trust that they are stationary.” He poked each clump with the blunt end of his bamboo pole, and determined that we could trust them as footholds for crossing over. And trust we did!
The word trust provides a variety of meanings; “I will trust you to take care of your little sister while I go down to the mailbox.” Or “I trust you to drive carefully and get home safely,” or “You have a Trust Fund.” These days, we have a glaring awareness that Trust carries heavy freight. Lack of trust undermines and rips at our social fabric; we can see its ruinous results at many levels.
A local TV Station has a program segment called “Verify.” When the station receives a question about an issue, whether it seems to be untrue or true, a news team digs to the bottom to verify its truth, or reveal its falsehood. As I was writing this, a questionable rumor was reported to be circulating on social media; later, after careful research, the rumor was revealed to be false. One could hope the TV station’s effort is a bellwether of corrective actions to come. Ronald Reagan said, “Trust, but verify.”
This from Psychology Today: Trust—or the belief that someone or something can be relied on to do what they say they will—is a key element of social relationships and a foundation for cooperation. It is critical for romantic relationships, friendships, interactions between strangers, and social groups on a large scale, and a lack of trust in such scenarios can come with serious consequences. Indeed, society as a whole would likely fail to function in the absence of trust.
Trust is mostly built over time; there are exceptions, such as in combat or great crisis. Yes, trust can be risky; but it can be immensely rewarding to build strong trust—in a friend, your mate, an institution, or leaders. Yet. Trust can be destroyed in a nanosecond. Solid trust must be nurtured. Jesus gave a clear example of trust-building in Luke’s Gospel: Much will be expected from the one who has been given much, and the more a man is trusted, the more people will expect of him.” (Read the story).
The Boy Scouts understand the need to build and nurture trust as well as basic character strengths. Every troop meeting begins as the Scouts repeat the Scout Law; also at every merit badge and advancement interview; “A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.” “Trustworthy” is first.
We human beings have a deep need for solid personal relationships. Family ties tend to come first, but a personal relationship with a friend develops through deep trust. Cornel West said, “We have to recognise that there cannot be relationships unless there is commitment, unless there is loyalty, unless there is love, patience, persistence.”
― And. In Proverbs find one of the most memorized trust verses;
Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
don’t rely on your own intelligence.
6 Know him in all your paths,
and he will keep your ways straight.
After Moses led the Children of Israel out generations of slavery in Egypt, he was exhausted and frustrated. He shared his concerns with his father-in-law, Jethro; who pointed out to Moses he needed to organize and delegate. Jethro told Moses to select trustworthy people, assign leadership roles, and trust them to do their job. Moses found those leaders, trusted them, “…and the rest,” as they say, “is history.”