The Tragedy Of The Wrong Trust

My sister reminded me today that I follow her in almost everything.

She may not have the same level of interest in the something, but she will start it and I will follow. Well that was certainly the case when it came to music. She enjoyed gospel music. I enjoyed gospel music. She liked the occasional Beatles song, I got into the Beatles big time. It’s as if I could trust whatever my sister enjoyed to be the right thing to enjoy.

It was with this in mind that a documentary she sent me today took my interest. The documentary was on Billy Preston who among other things played with the Beatles on some of their later albums. Even after the split spent time with some of them and then did some stuff with the Rolling Stones. He was particularly known for his organ and piano playing although he was a soulful vocalist penning the brilliant love song You Are So Beautiful.

The documentary, however, was tinged throughout with the overwhelming sense of tragedy about his life. Tormented with problems from within and without the documentary depicted a man who sought solace in drink and drugs for the issues that afflicted him. His battle with the demons within him was one he would never win as the cycle of addiction, recovery and relapse took a fatal affect.

Threaded throughout the documentary, though, was his faith and the church upbringing that played a pivotal part in his love of music and the sulful approach he would have even as his style crossed genres.Whatever the message of the church and whatever solace he found there, it was as if his trust was never in the Jesus that the church preached. It was as if because of betrayals in the past and hypocrisies back there too, he could never fully trust in Jesus.

When he couldn’t trust Jesus, he chose to trust himself and for all the prayers and well meaning determinations to fight the wars within it wasn’t enough.

It was too sad to be pointing the blame at anyone or anything for the turn out. It was clear, though that sometimes we put trust in things that won’t ever truly be there when we need it the most. They will not be able to resolve the issues that go on inside. The tragedy of putting our trust in the wrong thing is that with all the will in the world, it can have devastating effects.

Today marks 15 years since I left London to initially move to Stoke-on-Trent. Among other things what that time taught me was how easy it is to be trust in the wrong thing. I witnessed it and experienced it. Putting significant trust in people and organisations that were always going to let me down. I never saw God’s hand in these things letting me know that trust in anyone can only make sense if my trust is completely in Him.

I never saw it at first, but over the initial ten years it became abundantly apparent that I could not trust money. I learnt the hard way that not even religious figures were immune from falls from grace. I saw how organisations themselves could not be fit to be trustworthy. I did become resentful, bitter and hurt, until I learnt to see that God was ensuring I didn’t put my trust in the wrong source.

Even today I realise how prone I am to put my trust in anything but Him, but, even as my sister did first so many years ago, I have learnt and am learning to trust God with everything.

For His Name’s Sake

Shalom

C. L. J.. Dryden