The Bryce Crawford Podcast - The Hardest Biblical Principle to Apply (EP 99)

Episode Date: June 25, 2025

In this episode, Bryce discusses one of the most challenging biblical truths to apply to your life.

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fall what's going on guys welcome back to another episode of the brice driver podcast i'm brison today by the title of today's episode we're going to be diving into what i believe is the hardest biblical principle to follow i mean every time i talk to older leaders pastors mentors i always hear this common theme that this one biblical principle is the hardest thing to apply to their lives is something that they never stop learning. It's something that they've never fully 100% made it and achieved. It's like this is something that they are always wrestling with God with learning and constantly doing with him. And that is trusting God. I believe that trusting God is the hardest biblical principle to follow. And I want to break down some scriptures here, share some testimony with you on why we should trust

of God, why he is faithful and just, why he is the only one that will not let us down, and why that this principle can be something that we don't have to waver on. I want to begin by reading over, reading Proverbs 3, 5 through 6 over us to begin with. On this urgency, we read from King Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, tells us to do this thing. wisest man think about this the wisest man to ever live who has all the wisdom in the world given from god he doesn't look at you and i and say trust yourself this is what he says the one who has all the wisdom in the world he says trust in the lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make straight your paths

And I love verse seven, be not wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. The wisest man to ever live says that where our trust is, where our satisfaction should be, where our significance should be, where you and I find our security should be in the Lord. meaning that everywhere else we look is going to be this sandy foundation that could fail. But if we put our trust in God, it's going to be this absolute rock that's not going to falter. It's not going to, it's not going to shake, it's not going to move.

It's going to be a firm foundation of the Lord. And the reason why I say that this principle is so hard to apply to our lives is because we are in constant states of anxiousness, fear, confusion. We never fully have this constant 24-7 trusting in the Lord. Like I heard a pastor say one time, he said, if you ain't scared, you ain't doing it right. If God calls you to something, you ain't scared, you ain't doing it right. And I began, I laughed because I think it's true, right? You know, if we, God calls us to something, it doesn't necessarily make sense in the natural. If God calls us to do something, it asks us to do something, It doesn't always make sense in the natural,

but there's something going on in the spiritual realm where our action and decision making, based on the thing that God is calling us to do, is going to break chains, bring breakthrough, bring restoration, bring freedom, and we need to act on that.

But it's not going to make sense in the natural. So it makes sense to be scared, right? But there's a story in the Bible where we see this faith, this trust in God, so specifically, changed out now look i i i want to clarify something really quick faith and trust in god is the hardest biblical principle to apply i think this is why in the new testament the new testament writers often say

those who endure till the end will be saved those who endure to the end those who have ultimate trust till the end till death do us part And so like when when we're reading these stories, we're reading the New Testament and it's saying, hey, look, trust in the Lord, trust in the Lord, trust in the Lord, those who endured till the end will be saved. Like we have to understand there's a weight to trusting the Lord. I mean, Hebrews 4 tells us that the word of God is like a double-edged sword that separates the soul from the spirit. And all throughout Proverbs, it actually tells us that there is a way that seems right to you and I. This is why Solomon says, don't trust in anything else but the Lord.

Because the way that seems right to you and me, in the end, it leads to death. Proverbs says in Proverbs 14. All throughout Proverbs, it says the same thing. So if the wisest man on earth is saying, hey, if you want to lean on your own understanding, it's going to lead to death. If you lean on your own understanding, you're leaning on your feelings. They're going to change every other day. Don't trust yourself.

Trust God. Why trust God over yourself? God's opinion doesn't change about you. His truth is what sets us free. His truth is eternal and everlasting and is the only thing that can actually set us free. Sin and our own feelings feels like freedom until you try to quit.

But trusting in the Lord is what true freedom actually looks like. Trusting in the Lord looks like a yoke and a burden being taken off of your shoulders that you weren't meant to carry. You know, what's crazy is we oftentimes say, Oh yeah, I trust God. Well, I trust God. You might even be listening or watching this episode and being saying, man, I trust God,

I trust God, I trust God, of course I trust God. We're trusting God because your life's going great right now. We need to learn to trust God in the highs and at the peaks of life. We need to learn to trust God the same in the lows of life. And we really need to learn to trust God in the mundane average. It's a Tuesday. I'm going to go get tacos for lunch kind of day. We need to learn to trust God in every aspect.

The mundane, the highs and lows. We need to learn to trust them the same. and I love this story in Luke 8 because there's a story where Jesus is with the disciples and he tells the disciples hey we're going to the other side. They get on this boat, Jesus falls asleep. The craziest storm ever rises up. Okay.

And the disciples think that they're going to die. Now, what do they do? They go wake up Jesus. Jesus is asleep in the craziest storm ever. I don't know if you guys have ever seen that old teeth. TV show called Deadliest Catch. Okay, it was like a fishing TV show where dudes would catch like wicked. There's another show called Wicked Tuna, Deadliest Catch.

They're fishing shows. But you would see some of the craziest storms ever in these boats. And I'm terrified of that stuff. So I'm picturing something like that times 100 where I'm reading the story. And Jesus is asleep. And I think right here this picture of chaos surrounding this, this boat. boat, but Jesus being asleep in the middle of this storm is what trusting God actually looks like. But right now, we're looking at the disciples and how they react.

They're freaking out. They go wake up Jesus. Like, what? Are you kidding me? Jesus, you're going to let us die. We're about to die. What the heck? Jesus, do something.

He gets up, calms the storm, and he looks at all the disciples and says, why do you have little faith? And I remember reading this story for a while and just wondering, why would he say that to them? Is he making fun of them? You know, Jesus, he hasn't, he hasn't been transfigured yet. You know, he hasn't revealed himself to the disciples that he's the Christ. So I'm like, what is going on? The reason Jesus asked the disciples why they had little faith is because before they even got in the boat, he told them that they were going to the other side, which means it didn't matter

the trials, the storms, the craziness that was going to happen. They were going to go to the other side because that's what the Lord spoke. That's why he was asleep on the boat. It's because he knew that they were going to go to the other side. And he told them they were going to go to the other side. In the same way, why is it that when God speaks something over your life, that God tells you to do something? God asks you to do something out of obedience.

But the second, something naturally hard comes at your way, you freak out, begin not to trust God. Is that where you really spoke God, even though you confirmed it eight times? Did you really tell me to do that? Are you really telling me to do this? We freak out on God when something natural. comes in the way when it doesn't matter how big the Red Sea is. If God

has called something or called you to do something, he's going to split that Red Sea, he's going to calm that storm, and he's actually going to make a way. It doesn't matter how hard the trials or the mountains or the Goliaths you face that there's actually going to be peace to be had. That's why he's asleep of the boat.

He's asleep in the boat during the craziest storm ever. And then when you read later on, you know, Peter rejects Jesus three times. Okay? Three times. Think about this.

Jesus I'll never leave you. Bro, I'm your right or die. He rejects Jesus three times. He probably thinks it's all over. He's done too much. He can't do anything. If you guys know, Jesus basically has breakfast with Peter on the beach.

He's eating fish with him. Notice how Jesus meets Peter, firstly, fishing. Another eating fish. And he does something interesting. He tells Peter how he's going to die. He asks Peter three times, do you love me, do you love me, do you love me? Then he tells him how he's going to die.

And again, I'm thinking, why the heck would he tell Peter how he's going to die? That makes no sense. If someone told me how I was going to die, I'd be the most paranoid, anxious person ever. Why would he tell Peter how he was going to die? You have to understand. Peter just told Jesus he would be his right or die. He has rejected. him three times. He thinks it's all over. He's probably lost all of his trust. He has no trust in the

Lord. And the reason Jesus told Peter how he's going to die is because he was showing Peter that he would endure till the end. He would die for Christ. That he would trust God till the end. And every time I talk to these order mentors and leaders and pastors, everyone's saying, you know, I never stop learning how to trust God. Matthew chapter 6. Don't be anxious about anything. for if God closes the lilies of the field and beauty, how much more will he take care of you because you're made in his image? And if God feeds the birds of the air and they don't have to work for their food, how much more will he take care of you because you're made in his image? I mean, think about that. We'll never stop learning Matthew, chapter 6.

Do not be anxious about anything. Trust in the Lord. And I'm not saying this is easier said than done. I mean, I'm sitting here telling you guys that this is the hardest biblical principle to follow because I live it. I live, I understand that this is hard to follow. I mean, you know, everyone, everyone looks at the podcast. They look at the evangelism videos. They think, oh, man, you know, this all happened out of nowhere.

First of all, you guys haven't seen the tears. You guys never seen the tears that I've cried. You've never seen the struggles I've been through. You don't know how hard and what the cost of all this was. And, and you know, it was crazy. And I wanted to share this to close us out as a testament to trusting God. I remember when I was 17 years old, I put faith in Christ. And I'd been a Christian for about a month.

And I decided to go to this conference in Chattanooga, Tennessee, when I was 17 years old. And I went with a youth group in my hometown. I had been going to a few Wednesday nights. I didn't really know too many people. They're new like a handful of people. And so when we got there, there was like 2,000 people at this conference. It was called Wild Ones. Keep on, I'm in Christian for a month.

Don't know any preachers. Don't know any pastors. Don't know anything about that. They ask us to kick off that night. Hey, you know, go pray for people. Go grab someone to pray for them before we start the night. Well, everyone in the youth group that I was with, they grabbed their friends. So I wasn't praying with anyone.

So I went and saw this guy walk by. So I asked if I could pray for him. He said, sure. And I prayed for him. I went back to my seat. And I'm 17, one month into being a Christian. No grid for preachers, preaching, anything. They asked us to pray for people, so I prayed for the guy walking by.

Well, that guy that I ended up praying for ended up being the guy speaking that night. His name is Pastor Robert Madoo. And he gets up on stage and he goes, who prayed for me? And my heart sank because I thought I was in trouble. He goes, raise your hand if you pray for me. And I'm in the very back of the room. I raise my hand. And Pastor Robert Reduce says, come up here.

And I walk up. I'm standing in front of everyone at this conference. I'm one month in a being Christian. And he goes, you pray for me when no one else pray for me. So now I'm going to make everyone in this room pray for you. Everyone got up he made everyone come to the front and lay hands on me. 2,000 people laying hands on me. And this is why I'm telling you the story.

That night, one month in a day. one month into being a Christian, 17 years old. Pastor Robert Madu prophesied over my life that I would be an evangelist, that I would travel the country and preach the gospel

to millions of people. He prophesied that that night when I was one month into being Christian, 17 years old. And I remember hearing that and being so confused, like being like, what the heck? Never in a million years

what I thought reaching the middle. millions would come through digital media or preaching the gospel would literally be me in the streets and things like that. But think about, I had that spoken over me. The Lord spoke that through Robert Matthew to me one month into being a Christian. And yet it took me four years to trust this plan and the ups and downs, being anxious, being afraid. God, are you really going to pull through? God, do you really want me to move to L.A.? God, I thought I was supposed to go to Dallas, Texas, and here, and what is it going on? Did I make the wrong decision? this, this and that, but we don't trust God when he speaks something.

Even when he speaks something, we're just like, all right, whatever, thanks. And we put it on the shelf, and then we go do our own thing, and then we get anxious and afraid, and we don't trust. But I'm sharing that as a testimony to you, to encourage you and to empower you. I mean, if God speaks something to you, trust it. Don't put it on the shelf for later. Don't hide it. Trust it.

Trusting the Lord is going to be one of the most hardest. principles to follow, but it's going to be the most refreshing and rewarding when you stop leaning on your own understanding and you start leaning on God and realize that the good life is trusting in him and not in your feelings. So I want to pray for us. I want to pray that you and I are able to trust God more, that we're able to actually apply the word of God to our lives and we can actually trust the very words that we read and that we talk about on this podcast and then you and I learn about on Sundays at church that we can actually trust this thing

and apply it to our lives. I mean, God, we just love you and we thank you, God, we love that your words is that the friendship of the Lord is for those who fear them. God, we fear you and we love you. God, I believe that one of the hardest things in the Bible for us to follow is trusting you. God, would you help us trust you?

God, I'm not saying prove to us that we should trust you, God, you prove to us. You actually don't have to prove anything to us, but you have shown us that you are worthy of trusting, even to the point of death on a cross, Jesus. God, would you help us trust you? Help us lean on your own understanding. We don't want to lean on our understanding. We want to lean on your understanding.

God, let us trust you. Give us the strength to trust you. God, thank you that you don't change your mind about us, that you don't change your opinion about us, that you are the prince of peace and not the author of Confucian. So God, in the highs of life and the lows of life and in the mundane of life,

may we learn to trust you the same. God, we love you, thank you, praise you in Jesus, mighty name. Amen. Guys, thank you so much for watching and listening to this episode. If you guys like it, subscribe to us on YouTube, follow us on Spotify, Instagram, and TikTok.

Bless you guys and see you guys next week for the next episode.