From Faith to Trust

Sometimes we experience a strange sense of unfamiliarity when it comes to “faith.” What exactly is faith?

My friend KN once shared that believing is actually “knowing.” It’s like when you sit on a chair; you don’t feel endangered or hesitant because you clearly know the chair is stable and will hold you.

It’s just like the experience of sleeping on a bunk bed. When we see a high top bunk for the first time, we naturally feel a mix of novelty and fear because we don’t have enough faith in this bed yet. “Is it stable?” “Will it collapse in the middle of the night?” However, once we actually start sleeping on it and accumulate experience—which might include a few close calls of almost falling off, but mostly countless nights of sleeping through safely—we gradually develop faith in the bunk bed, believing that it is completely secure.

Shifting from “Faith” to “Trust”

During a recent chat with our pastor’s wife, she mentioned that she prefers to use the word “trust.” I resonated deeply with this because “trust” serves as an excellent analogy—it is more concrete and much easier to relate to than the abstract concept of faith.

In the past, when I said “I have faith in God,” it always seemed to require further explanation: What exactly about God do I have faith in?

• Do I have faith that God will let me pass my exams?
• Do I have faith that God will protect me through Taiwan’s chaotic traffic?
• Or do I have faith in God’s power and grace?

In our everyday language, saying “I have faith in someone” usually hinges on a 特定事件 (specific event). Just like when parents tell their child, “I have faith in you,” it usually means they believe the child can “achieve a certain task.”

However, when I switch to the word “trust,” the feeling becomes entirely different. It brings a sense of equality and alignment that requires no extra explanation. When I say “I trust you,” the statement inherently encompasses everything: I trust your character, your attitude, and your ability. It is a holistic belief rather than an event-based one. I have come to believe in the entirety of who that person is.

Conclusion: Total Surrender

I want to encourage myself with this: to truly trust in God’s leading.

This means that even when life’s outcomes do not match my expectations, I still choose to believe that His goodness and wisdom transcend the circumstances. This trust is the ultimate source of my faith.

This article was originally written in Chinese and translated into English by AI.
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