12/30/2025
I picked up this book with a familiar ache. It was the feeling of wanting to step forward in faith, in relationships, in God’s plans, in my own choices, but feeling frozen by a past that taught me to brace for impact. My trust felt broken in three directions: wary of people, nervous about God’s permissiveness in a painful world, and deeply unsure of my own ability to tell the difference between wisdom and fear.
Lysa TerKeurst doesn't write from a place of untouchable, perfect faith. She writes from the trenches of betrayal, cancer scares, and deep personal fractures. In I Want to Trust You, but I Don't, she becomes a gentle, honest guide for the wary soul, offering not cheap platitudes but a sturdy, biblical framework for rebuilding trust from the ground up.
Here are the 5 lessons that gave me a path forward:
1. Distrust is a Symptom, Not a Sin.
Lysa reframes our skepticism not as a spiritual failure, but as a protective reflex born of legitimate pain. God isn't standing over you, disappointed in your doubt. He’s kneeling beside you in it. The starting point for healing is to stop berating yourself for being hurt and to start compassionately acknowledging where the wound came from. This permission to be honest was the first step in loosening shame's grip.
2. God’s Trustworthiness is Not Measured by His Permissiveness.
A core hurdle for many is the fear: "If I trust God, what hard thing will He allow next?" Lysa makes a crucial distinction: God’s character is steadfastly good and faithful, even when His methods are mysterious or painful. Trust isn't believing God will prevent all pain; it's believing that in the midst of it, His love for you is unwavering and His presence is certain. This separates His heart from our hardship.
3. Healthy Trust Requires New Categories: "Entrust," Not Just "Trust."
This was the most practical, freeing concept. We often think in black and white: either I blindly trust someone with everything, or I wall them off completely. Lysa introduces the idea of "entrusting." It's a conscious, discerning process. You can entrust someone with a specific task or a limited part of your heart, based on their current, proven character, without giving them the master key to your entire soul. This allows for wise, gradual rebuilding instead of reckless vulnerability.
4. Discernment is a Muscle You Can Strengthen With God’s Word.
When your own judgment has failed you, it’s terrifying to rely on it again. Lysa teaches that discernment isn't a mystical feeling; it's the practiced skill of aligning your thoughts with God's truth. She provides tangible ways to use Scripture as a "plumb line" to check if a thought, opportunity, or relationship is straight or crooked. This transforms discernment from a shaky guess into a learnable, confidence-building practice.
5. The Goal is Not a Pain-Free Life, But a Peace-Guarded Heart.
The book’s ultimate hope isn't that you’ll never be hurt again. It’s that you can develop a trust in God so foundational that, even when people fail you or circumstances shatter, your core peace remains guarded by His promises. You learn to place your primary, unshakable trust in Him, which then informs and calibrates how you navigate trust with everything and everyone else.
This book is a healing balm and a practical toolkit. It’s for anyone whose past has left them with a flinch reflex toward faith and connection. Lysa TerKeurst doesn't just tell you to "trust more." She walks with you, step by scarred step, showing you how to rebuild that capacity on the only truly secure foundation there is. It is a profoundly hope-filled manual for the cautiously brave.
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