Acknowledging God

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways, acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths."

 I do trust God -- on the surface -- don't you?  I give lip service to his being in control of world events and believe in my heart that He is my eternal savior. Having memorized this oft-quoted verse since my childhood, I'd come to believe that if I acknowledge the sovereignty of God in my life (or, as some translations say, "make him known" to others) that he is obligated to straighten out my paths and make the way before me easy and sure. Yet, nearly every time I ask to hear his voice of direction lately, the only words I comprehend are "Trust Me." 

In order to trust God, we've got to give up our own understanding of things.  The Hebrew word "Understanding" in this verse is  biynah, which according to Strong's Concordance  means "knowledge, meaning, [idiomatically] perfectly" and comes from biyn the meanings of which include: "separate mentally (or distinguish); attend, consider; be cunning; diligently; feel, inform, instruct, have intelligence; look well to, perceive, be prudent.... be skillful; think....."  There are many verses in Proverbs that tell us to seek this kind of understanding, but Prov 3:5 says that leaning on our own version of these things keeps us from trusting God, and honestly, if we do lean on this understanding, it is sin.  Frankly, thinking is one my biggest problems -- I get to thinking, and can't stop.  I roll things over and over in my head, according to my own understanding.  And when I can't stop thinking, I can't start trusting. 

"Trust" is batach and has a much deeper meaning that is going to take some meditating upon to really soak it in.  It is a primitive root that literally means "refuge" and by extension has come to mean "to trust, be confident, or sure; be bold (confident, secure, sure); careless; make to hope; (put, make to trust)."

So let me reword that cliche-sounding verse that we think we all know so well:
"Be confident, bold, and even careless or carefree, as you make yourself hope in the Lord and stay within the refuge of him.  Be fully confident and secure in his ability to take care of you.  Do not depend on your intelligence, cunning, or prudence.  Your consideration and perception are insufficient, so let go of them and stop looking to your mind's ability to properly sort things out or instruct you in any way."

The next phrase expounds on this meaning:  "In all your ways acknowledge him.... "
What does acknowledge mean these days?  My Microsoft thesaurus links it to words like recognize or greet.  When you're in a conversation and someone else walks in the room, you might smile or nod toward them to acknowledge their presence.  If someone does something important, their companny may give them a  VIP award and ask them to make a speech, in order to "acknowledge" their accomplishment.  But is that the kind of acknowledgement that makes the Almighty stoop down from heaven and take notice of my little path? Perhaps it is giant fanfare that he wants, or non-stop witnessing?  Look at what Strong's says: yada = "to know (ascertain by seeing)" It includes "... acquainted with... assuredly... be aware; for a certainty; comprehend, consider, discover; familiar friend; famous; feel; kinsman; (cause to) know; lie by a man... mark, perceive, privy to...."  This is much different than what I've ever been taught!  So let us again rephrase the cliche:
"In all your ways, know God!  Ascertain who he is by seeing him!  Become acquainted with and comprehend him with certainty, as you would a relative or dear familiar friend.  Discover who he is.  Perceive what he is doing and by familiarity become privy to his secrets... and he will direct your paths."

See, it's not about manipulation.  "If I make a big enough deal about God, he'll help me."

Nor is it about assumption.  "I know God (as in, I'm saved), so whatever comes across my path must be his will."

It is about intimacy.  A well-cared for child does not ask permission from her parents on every tiny little detail.  She is acquainted with them and what they would do or ask of her.  She knows what they will say because she has already studied them and knows their habits and character.  They have told her things they haven't told other children; she has been let in on family secrets that help her understand their choices and idiosyncracies... even understand herself. When her own understanding fails her, she can come into the refuge of their greater knowledge, let go of her cares and leave her troubles to their trustworthy wisdom. All because she "knows" them.

No earthly parent truely or adequately fills the above scenario, but whether your parents come close or are the complete antithesis, God is perfect.  He is trustworthy.  He is know-able.  Knowing him, and not our mind, will direct our paths.