Excerpt

"That's how God wins your trust. He's asking you to follow him as you see him unfolding his will in you. As you do that, you'll find that his words and his ways will hold more certainty for you than your best plans or wisdom."
"I've never seen it that way, John. I've always thought faith was something I had to conjure up to get God to act."
"That doesn't sound too healthy, does it? Increasing trust is the fruit of a growing relationship. The more you know him and his ways the more free you'll be to live beyond the influences that tie you down to your own flawed wisdom. As you see his faithfulness unfold in you life through the coming days, you will come to know just how deeply you can trust him. That's where you'll find real freedom."
"So there is no trust where there's no relationship?"
"No, there's not. Too many people confuse faith with presumption. They are consumed by their own agenda, even quoting scriptures to prove God will have to do it their way and end up so disappointed when he doesn't. But God will even use that disappointment to invite them into a real trust that is based on his unfolding work in them."
- Excerpt from the book So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore by Jake Colsen chapter 10, Won to Trust, page 135. Read for yourself for free online at www.jakecolsen.com