--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If trust must be earned, hasn't God…" description: "\"If trust must be earned, hasn't God unequivocally earned our trust with the bark on the raw wounds, the thorns pressed into the brow, your name on the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/370/ann-voskamp-729_bark_if-trust-must-be-earned-hasn-t-god-unequ_1900767.png" --- # If trust must be earned, hasn't God unequivocally earned… ![“If trust must be earned, hasn't God unequivocally earned our trust with the bark on the raw wounds, the thorns pressed into the brow, your name on the cracked lips.” quote by Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/370/ann-voskamp-729_bark_if-trust-must-be-earned-hasn-t-god-unequ_1900767.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/370/ann-voskamp-729_bark_if-trust-must-be-earned-hasn-t-god-unequ_1900767.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/370/ann-voskamp-729_bark_if-trust-must-be-earned-hasn-t-god-unequ_1900767.png) > “If trust must be earned, hasn't God unequivocally earned our trust with the bark on the raw wounds, the thorns pressed into the brow, your name on the cracked lips.” [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Trust is portrayed as earned through suffering and divine presence in pain. **In simple terms:** God earns trust through hardship. Key Takeaway Recognize divine care in suffering. Themes faith trust spirituality Mood contemplative hopeful Type spiritual inspirational When to use this quote - grief counseling - spiritual reflection - healing after trauma - religious practice Key Concepts theodicy redemptive suffering Questions to Reflect On - How does pain shape your trust in the divine? - Can suffering be both a gift and a burden? A Different Perspective May overlook personal agency in suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bark/) [Brows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brows/) [God Unequivocally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-unequivocally-2803830/) [Lips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lips/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Thorns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thorns/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) [Trust Bark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust-bark-2803829/) [Trust Earned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust-earned/) [Wounds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wounds/) [Wounds Thorns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wounds-thorns-1116887/) ## Related quotes > [“It really is true. It took this awful situation for us to realize it. Nick and I fit together. I am a little too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/it-really-is-true-it-took-this-awful-situation-for-us-to-realize-it/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“It took this awful situation for us to realize it. Nick and I fit together. I am a little too much, and he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/it-took-this-awful-situation-for-us-to-realize-it-nick-and-i-fit/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“I am a thornbush, bristling from the overattention of my parents, and he is a man of a million little fatherly stab wounds, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/i-am-a-thornbush-bristling-from-the-overattention-of-my-parents-and/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [Forgiveness is granted, not earned. Trust is earned, not granted. Don't continue to hold yourself accountable for what others can't let go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/forgiveness-is-granted-not-earned-trust-is-earned-not-granted-don-t/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [Yeah, trust is earned. To a degree, it just comes with time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-winston-george/yeah-trust-is-earned-to-a-degree-it-just-comes-with-time/) [Jason Winston George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-winston-george/) > [“You of all people know how hard it is to trust. Especially when the world we live in is not the one humans are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-morgan/you-of-all-people-know-how-hard-it-is-to-trust-especially-when-the/) [Elizabeth Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-morgan/) > [We lost our relationship but we found it again only this time the trust has to be earned back , the stories have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mccarty/we-lost-our-relationship-but-we-found-it-again-only-this-time-the/) [Kevin McCarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mccarty/) > [“Love should always be given, but trust must be earned, and never forget or else be tagged the fool, doomed to repeat history.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-fields/love-should-always-be-given-but-trust-must-be-earned-and-never-forget/) [L.M. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-fields/) > [Trust is not a request, Trust is earned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-gitomer/trust-is-not-a-request-trust-is-earned/) [Jeffrey Gitomer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-gitomer/) > [“Because trust earned by action is always better than words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-seeley/because-trust-earned-by-action-is-always-better-than-words/) [Tim Seeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-seeley/) > [Interest is shown in effort talk is supported by actions and trust is earned in consistency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/interest-is-shown-in-effort-talk-is-supported-by-actions-and-trust-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Trust is earned, Never bought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-wagner/trust-is-earned-never-bought/) [Jacob Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-wagner/) > [Trust is something that has to be earned. not many can earn it, but some can. Bestfriends will betray you at some time, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shay/trust-is-something-that-has-to-be-earned-not-many-can-earn-it-but/) [Shay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shay/) > [Trust is earned, and as long as special interests can continue to buy influence with PAC money we're going to continue losing the faith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-phillips/trust-is-earned-and-as-long-as-special-interests-can-continue-to-buy/) [Dean Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-phillips/) > [Forgiveness is free but trust is earned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/forgiveness-is-free-but-trust-is-earned/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) ## More by Ann Voskamp > [We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Because how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/we-only-enter-into-the-full-life-if-our-faith-gives-thanks-because/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [The answer to deep anxiety is the deep adoration of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-answer-to-deep-anxiety-is-the-deep-adoration-of-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [“Trauma's storm can mask the Christ and feelings can lie. I draw all the hurting voices close and I tough their scars with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/trauma-s-storm-can-mask-the-christ-and-feelings-can-lie-i-draw-all/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [“How long does it take for your soul to recognize that your life is full? The slower the living, the greater the sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/how-long-does-it-take-for-your-soul-to-recognize-that-your-life-is/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [“For forty long years, God's people daily eat manna - a substance whose name literally mans 'What is it?' Hungry, they choose to gather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/for-forty-long-years-god-s-people-daily-eat-manna-a-substance-whose/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [The real romantics imagine greying and sagging and wrinkling as the deepening of something sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-real-romantics-imagine-greying-and-sagging-and-wrinkling-as-the/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Scales always lie. They don't make a scale that ever told the truth about value, about worth, about significance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/scales-always-lie-they-don-t-make-a-scale-that-ever-told-the-truth/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Darkness transfigures into light, bad transfigures into good, grief transfigures into grace, empty transfigures into full. God wastes nothing – ‘makes everything work out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/darkness-transfigures-into-light-bad-transfigures-into-good-grief/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [“And the saddest of all may be when we give away our lives to insignificant things, things we didn’t realize we subconsciously loved. Turns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/and-the-saddest-of-all-may-be-when-we-give-away-our-lives-to/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [“Satan's sin becomes the first sin of all humanity: the sin of ingratitude .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/satan-s-sin-becomes-the-first-sin-of-all-humanity-the-sin-of/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Simplicity is never a matter of circumstances; simplicity is a matter of focus. So in the midst of educating and parenting our children, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/simplicity-is-never-a-matter-of-circumstances-simplicity-is-a-matter/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Every day, with every word, we get to decide: Do we mar the world, or mark the world?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/every-day-with-every-word-we-get-to-decide-do-we-mar-the-world-or/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Thanksgiving-giving thanks in everything-prepares the way that God might show us His fullest salvation in Christ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/thanksgiving-giving-thanks-in-everything-prepares-the-way-that-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Practice is the hardest part of learning, and training is the essence of transformation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/practice-is-the-hardest-part-of-learning-and-training-is-the-essence/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Every moment I live, I live bowed to something. And if I don't see God, I'll bow down before something else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/every-moment-i-live-i-live-bowed-to-something-and-if-i-don-t-see-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) [Explore all 390 Ann Voskamp quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) ## More Bark quotes > [A tree is a self: it is 'unseen shaping' more than it is leaves or bark, roots or cellulose or fruit ... What this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-swimme/a-tree-is-a-self-it-is-unseen-shaping-more-than-it-is-leaves-or-bark/) [Brian Swimme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-swimme/) > [If the watchdog doesn't bark, how do you know there's a burglar in the basement? And the press is supposed to be a watchdog.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-moyers/if-the-watchdog-doesn-t-bark-how-do-you-know-there-s-a-burglar-in-the/) [Bill Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-moyers/) > [Guests are people who come to your home to see you whine at the table, bark loudly, jump on women wearing pantyhose, and do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peg-kehret/guests-are-people-who-come-to-your-home-to-see-you-whine-at-the-table/) [Peg Kehret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peg-kehret/) > [I was haunted always by my other life-my drab room in the Bronx, my square foot of the subway, my fixation upon the day's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/i-was-haunted-always-by-my-other-life-my-drab-room-in-the-bronx-my/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [We must guard against becoming so engrossed in the specific nature of the roots and bark of the trees of knowledge as to miss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-s-patton/we-must-guard-against-becoming-so-engrossed-in-the-specific-nature-of/) [George S. Patton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-s-patton/) > [A tortoise is, I suppose, a Jewish pet. It knows its place. Out on the lawn. It doesn't bark. It doesn't tear the Dralon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/a-tortoise-is-i-suppose-a-jewish-pet-it-knows-its-place-out-on-the/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [Our legal system, including the police, is anti-Dalit and anti-poor. The death penalty laws' wrathful majesty, in blood-shot equality, deals the fatal blow on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-r-krishna-iyer/our-legal-system-including-the-police-is-anti-dalit-and-anti-poor-the/) [V. R. Krishna Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-r-krishna-iyer/) > [It is no use painting the foot of the tree white, the strength of the bark cries out from beneath the paint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aime-cesaire/it-is-no-use-painting-the-foot-of-the-tree-white-the-strength-of-the/) [Aime Cesaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aime-cesaire/) > [Dogs, also, bark at what they do not know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heraclitus/dogs-also-bark-at-what-they-do-not-know/) [Heraclitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heraclitus/) > [The dogs may bark, but the caravan moves on](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-needham/the-dogs-may-bark-but-the-caravan-moves-on/) [Joseph Needham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-needham/) > [Dogs that bark dont bite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/german-proverb/dogs-that-bark-dont-bite/) [German Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/german-proverb/) > [I bark my voice out through a closed throat, pretty much. 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