Isaiah 40:29-31 (NLT) - 29 He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. 30 Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. 31 But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.

2 Chronicles 16:9 (NLT) - 9 The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.

Three types of trust

1. A PURE trust - The test of Zerah the Ethiopian

• He removed all other sources of hope and help.
• He sought the Lord.
• He obeyed God.
• He cried out to God when he was in trouble.
• 2 Chronicles 14:9-12 (NLT) - 9 Once an Ethiopian named Zerah attacked Judah with an army of 1,000,000 men and 300 chariots. They advanced to the town of Mareshah, 10 so Asa deployed his armies for battle in the valley north of Mareshah. 11 Then Asa cried out to the Lord his God, "O Lord, no one but you can help the powerless against the mighty! Help us, O Lord our God, for we trust in you alone. It is in your name that we have come against this vast horde. O Lord, you are our God; do not let mere men prevail against you!" 12 So the Lord defeated the Ethiopians in the presence of Asa and the army of Judah, and the enemy fled.

2. A MIXED trust - The test of Baasha of Israel

• God's blessing brought pride to Asa's heart. After 20 years, he forgot who had brought him the blessing and victory.
• He trusted his own wisdom.
• 2 Chronicles 16:7-10 (NLT) - 7 At that time Hanani the seer came to King Asa and told him, "Because you have put your trust in the king of Aram instead of in the Lord your God, you missed your chance to destroy the army of the king of Aram. 8 Don't you remember what happened to the Ethiopians and Libyans and their vast army, with all of their chariots and charioteers? At that time you relied on the Lord, and he handed them over to you. 9 The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. What a fool you have been! From now on you will be at war. 10 Asa became so angry with Hanani for saying this that he threw him into prison and put him in stocks. At that time Asa also began to oppress some of his people."
• God is SEARCHING.
• He wants to STRENGTHEN.
• He needs our hearts FULLY committed.

3. A MISPLACED trust - The test of disease

• In the end, Asa was bitter and cold towards God. He was faced with a painful disease, and the Bible specifically says that he did not ask God for help.
• 2 Chronicles 16:12-13 (NLT) - 12 In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa developed a serious foot disease. Yet even with the severity of his disease, he did not seek the Lord's help but turned only to his physicians. 13 So he died in the forty-first year of his reign.