I was in a meeting today where the leader was seeking to be trusted. Some great dialogue ensued about what trust requires and demands. We know well, gone are the days when we trust people because they are in leadership or have authority over us or they ask for trust. Experience tells us, we have reason to distrust based on this criterion.
Talk is cheap. Earning trust will cost you something. There are some important characteristics you have to consider if you hope to be perceived as trustworthy: You have to be authentic. Duplicity won’t cut it. Loyalty and respect come to mind. You’ll have to lay down some flesh and blood in order to get most people to buy into you. And I just can’t trust a person who doesn’t trust me.
Let’s be honest, we distrust people because we have learned some hard lessons. And frankly, not everyone deserves to be trusted. So my simple advice – travel down the trust road with caution.
Excuse my cynicism but I think I’ll be a bit stingy with dispensing any new trust right now. There are some solid folk in my life who are above any distrust. They have proven that they have my back.
You new guys will have to hold off for a bit…
Thoughts on Life and Leading 
There really is a stigma around not giving out immediate trust in the Christian community and I think it’s mostly based on I Cor 13:7.
I know I’ve gotten in a couple of discussions with other believers about where the line of holding off trust should be drawn. Apparently it’s somewhere after buying land in Palm Springs.
I’m still up in the air on this one.
Megan, I’m not buying the “we need to trust everyone because they are Christ-followers” thing. Even Jesus didn’t trust His followers, and for good reason. John 2:23-24 “Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him. But Jesus didn’t trust them, because he knew human nature.” I’m just trying to be balanced and not be too much of a cynic.