Proverbs 31.11-12
“The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.”
The virtuous woman doesn’t demand to be trusted. She simply acts in a consistent, trustworthy manner that demonstrates her credibility and trustworthiness. This makes me think of Proverbs 20.11, which says, “Even a child makes himself known by his acts, by whether his conduct is pure and upright.”
As I said yesterday, trust is earned by your behavior, not granted by your position or title. There are three ways that you deliver an experience to others and earn their trust:
- Attitude. People feel your mood and mindset.
- Action. People see what you do and how you do it.
- Words. People hear what you say and how you say it.
Alignment of the three elements is essential. If your attitude and action are not in alignment with your words, you will lose trust. Actions speak louder than words. Your trustworthiness is based on what you do, not what you say. Promises don’t cut it – talk is cheap. Everyone talks, but if your actions are not in alignment with your words, you will lose trust. What you say has credibility only if it is confirmed and validated by your attitude and action.
It is imperative, therefore, that we pay careful attention to the attitude we display, the actions we engage in, and the words that we use. And because we live in a world awash in words, it is particularly important to align our attitude and action with our words.
The church produces a lot of words. Sermons, Sunday school classes, bible studies, books, articles, websites, posts on social media, even bumper stickers and billboards … the people of God are constantly communicating with words. And that is as it should be. However, what is essential is consistency between what we say and what we do. Otherwise, we have very little credibility.
Jesus spoke to this basic truth in the Sermon on the Mount: “You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.” (Matthew 7.16-20)
Trust God, bear fruit, and earn the trust of others.
