Who Are You Depending On?

By Rick Warren

If you want God’s blessing on your relationships, career, studies, finances, and health, you have to humbly depend on God instead of yourself.

So how do you do that? And, how do you know if you’re really trusting God well in your life? Here are five ways to depend on God and a practical test to rate yourself in each area.

Depend on God’s wisdom, not yours. Are you talking to God constantly throughout the day and reading the Bible every day? If you’re not, you are depending on your wisdom and not God’s. You need to give him the first choice in every decision.

Depend on God’s strength, not yours. Are you walking in the strength of the Lord? Do other people see God’s strength in you?

Depend on God’s timing, not yours. How impatient are you? Are you taking matters into your own hands, or are you waiting patiently on God’s timing?

Depend on God’s defense, not yours. When somebody says something mean to you on social media, do you immediately retaliate? When someone spreads lies about you at work, do you turn around and do the same thing to that person?

Depend on God’s security, not yours. Where are you looking for your source of security? Are you nervous or full of worry because you think you don’t have enough to get by, or are you depending on God to meet your needs?

How are you doing in each of these areas? In which of these is it hardest for you to be dependent on God? Take some time right now to confess your weakness to God, and ask him to help you trust him in each of these areas as you learn to depend on him for wisdom, strength, timing, defense, and security.

“The LORD God of Jacob blesses everyone who trusts him and depends on him” (Psalm 146:5 CEV).