DaySpring Daily Word of Inspiration: 1 Peter 5:6 – Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
How hard in your life have you tried to show that you are a talented person? How hard have you worked to let someone know that you’re relevant? How often do you have to talk yourself up so that it peaks other’s interest into who you are?
Sometimes we can get caught up in the way that society tells us that we need to be so that we can be successful, how we can get that wedding ring or even how we can live any way we want to. This is a dangerous trap that disables our ability to connect with God as our source of power and puts the “seeming” power into our own hands. We stress ourselves out trying to work for the approval of others only then to be cut down, talked about or even disassociated with because of our tactics to rise to prominence.
Have you found yourself trying to do everything possible to climb your company’s ladder? You work the long hours, you sacrifice time with your family and you make accommodations for your work above other areas in your life which are more important. Sometimes you don’t even take good care of your own health to make sure you get your company’s work done. After all of that, you’re up for your annual review and you can’t get a raise….or there’s a company-wide freeze… or have you heard this one, “it’s not in this year’s budget”. What about this one, “We’re only going to be able to give out 1-3% raises this year, and you’re only eligible for a 1% increase”. Needless to say, your own power will not get you to heights you want to go and even if they did, you wouldn’t be completely happy – don’t believe me, then why do some rich people suffer from depression, loneliness and suicidal thoughts?
Our passage today helps us to remember that there is a higher power that can do better than all of your efforts combined. The problem is that most people don’t want to submit to that power in order to get the benefits from it. We want to be in control of our destinies. We want to be the ones who are able to say, “I did it own my own!” How do I know, I used to be one of these same people. It wasn’t until I stopped trying to elevate myself and allow God to reign in my life, did true elevation began to happen.
We, as a Christian body, need to continually reevaluate our hearts to make sure that we’re relying own God’s ability to uplift us and not our own. When we trust in ourselves, we leave room for error, disappointment, setbacks and frustrations. When we humble ourselves and rely solely on the power of God, we are opened to the freedom of peace and tranquility. How is that possible? It is possible because if you truly believe that God is perfect and that all he does is perfect, wouldn’t you believe that he has a perfect plan for your life….which includes taking you to new heights! That IS peace in your life; freedom of worry.
Today, let’s learn to take the stress and strife out of our lives in trying to be the source of our own elevation. Let’s get back to the basics of humbling ourselves before the Lord and acknowledging that we are vulnerable and need him to lead us. God’s words are real! He will elevate you as his word says. The real question becomes, are you willing to humble yourself to the Lord to receive his elevation? It might not take you where you were planning to go, but it will absolutely take you to where you will most be needed – for God’s purpose (plus it will be a place you want to be).
We pray that you’re one of the people who are tired of relying on your own strength and being disappointed by it and are ready to take up God’s strength and rest in the fact that it can do more than you can imagine. Have a great day and we pray all this in Jesus’ name, AMEN!