Review of Can God Be Trusted?

Can God Be Trusted?
Finding Faith in Troubled Times
by Thomas D. Williams
FaithWords, 224 pages, $19.99

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America suffers from a crisis of trust. From the bedroom to the boardroom, fear, suspicion, and that distinctly American self-reliance make the phrase “In God We Trust” ring hollow. To counter this pervasive trend, Williams develops a theology of trust. Tied to the virtue of faith, trust always involves a certain risk. The cost-benefit analysis, however, makes that risk not only worthwhile, but necessary as well. Only in giving ourselves to others do we truly come alive. In this way, dependence becomes not weakness, but tremendous spiritual strength.

Williams explores why anyone, and especially God, is worthy of our trust, and looks at the challenges and expectations that accompany such a “letting go and letting God.” So often we are tempted to rely on our own education or talent or wealth that we reduce God to a divine parachute. Only a poverty of spirit that makes room for God can allow our trust in him to bear fruit. And while he will not always give us what we want, he will always give us what we need, and what we should want, to gain eternal life. Throughout his exploration, Williams takes the reader on a pop-cultural romp, incorporating such varied elements as The Beverly Hillbillies and Domino’s Pizza to illustrate his points. A number of compelling personal stories, culled from interviews conducted for this book, apply the theme to daily and universal struggles. Scriptural meditations abound, including a moving reflection on Zechariah and Elizabeth and a closing discussion of the psalms as a textbook of trust. In the end, trust is not only God’s gift to us, but a gift that we ourselves can give to God. Williams extends the affirmative answer to this book’s title: Not only can God be trusted, but trust in him is the only means to an authentic and fulfilled life. This work serves as a welcome aid on that challenging path.