Tag: Submit to God

Humility vs. Pride

On By CarmenLeave a comment

I’m sure we have all come across people who lack signs of humility and if we’re honest, we could say that we’ve at some point exhibited the same behavior.  

God’s word tells us to be humble, so it must be a quality we should learn and exercise throughout our lives.

God Desires Humility

He has told you, mortal one, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?

Micah 6:8

To walk humbly with God means to acknowledge that He is God and to submit to His wisdom because He knows what’s best for us.

God blesses us when we obey Him and strive to follow Him, especially when He points out to us an attitude or behavior we need to master.   

We need God to guide us through this life on earth because there is so much deceit and corruption lurking to take us down the wrong path.

The antithesis of humility is pride. It seeks its own glory and it demands everything for itself and its preservation but never ends well.

God is the Creator and we are the creation, and He made us to follow Him and serve Him.

Let’s seek His wisdom and exercise humility before Him and others until it becomes second nature.  

Consequences of Pride

Simply put, if we will not walk in humility before God, we stand to lose more than we gain.

Pride leads to disgrace,
    but with humility comes wisdom.

Proverbs 11:2

Consider the outcome of pride for Lucifer (Satan) the “angel of light,” the most beautiful of angels that God created.

“How you are fallen from heaven,
    O shining star, son of the morning!
You have been thrown down to the earth,
    you who destroyed the nations of the world.
For you said to yourself,
    ‘I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God’s stars.
I will preside on the mountain of the gods
    far away in the north.
I will climb to the highest heavens
    and be like the Most High.’
Instead, you will be brought down to the place of the dead,
    down to its lowest depths.

Isaiah 14:12-15

What a great fall the most beautiful of angels has had to endure!

These verses use imagery to depict not only Satan, but also the proud boasts of Nebuchadnezzar II, the king of Babylon, during his reign (605-562 BC). I encourage you to read the full chapter of Isaiah 14.

As we know, Satan is still at odds with God and is intent on seeing whomever and whatever God loves destroyed like he was and will ultimately be as is written in Revelation 20:1-10.

This is exactly why we need to be aligned with God in thought and behavior. God is willing to forgive our sins when we turn from them and seek after Him, for He has given us the gift of forgiveness through His Son Jesus Christ.

When we turn from God and battle with Him, we never win.

Hopefully when we feel the sting of the consequences of our sin of pride, we turn from it, seeking God’s way to live, and strive to be humble.  

God knows if our hearts are truly committed to Him and therefore works in us to overcome this sin and every other sin we commit.

We only need to ask Him for His help and follow through in obedience to His will.

The Blessing of Humility

God promises us blessings when we are humble before Him and others.

The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord
Are riches, honor, and life.

Proverbs 22:4

I would like to share with you a time in my life that I kept hearing God tell me to be humble, over and over.

I shared this with a group of women whom I considered my confidants, my women’s Bible study group.

At the time, I didn’t understand why He was calling me to be humble, because I thought I had learned from the stings of my past mistakes of pride.

I thought I was done with this sin problem in my life, and I certainly did not want to displease God and undergo any more consequences.

A few months later, I met with one of these confidants with whom I had the habit of discussing plans for our group study.

As I listened to this person speak to me, I was caught off guard because a part of it was not altogether pleasant for me. I was compared to a previous leader, and not in a good way.

Still, I listened and did not become defensive. Rather, I accepted the info she shared with me and began to think deeply about my behavior and why she said what she did.   

I mulled over that comment for a while because I was very hurt by it.  

I recalled varying aspects of her behavior that I had previously witnessed but did not feel it was my place to correct her. I believed God would show her the behavior she needed to correct.

I decided that none of us are perfect and I knew it was my place to love her despite her inconsistent walk with the LORD.

Within a couple of weeks, I saw God work in a way that caused her to leave after she had misgivings with our head pastor.

Later God started showing me that she had twisted something I shared with her in confidence and used it against me for whatever personal gain she was trying to achieve.  

I now understand that God was telling me back then to be humble, because He knew my capacity to speak up for myself—and at times strongly with my own words.

I am glad that God prepared me in advance for this situation and that I obeyed by listening and not reacting.

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you at the proper time, 

1 Peter 5:6

God has shown me that I don’t need to defend my reputation.  

By laying it at the feet of Jesus, I found resolution even if it took some time.

When we follow God and let Him lead us through His Holy Spirit, we will not lose our witness for Christ and be ashamed.

Humility Acknowledges Dependence upon God

I would like to close with the following thought that led me to write this post.

With the recent success of the orbit around the moon by the courageous astronauts of Artemis II, I was able to watch the inspiring view from space of our beautiful planet.

We exist in a very small portion of the universe, and we seem so insignificant from high above.

However, we are very important to God as He made us in His image and gave us the ability to accomplish such astounding feats.  

So small, so dependent upon and loved by God. This is reason enough to be humble.

I hope you enjoy this beautiful song below about following our Creator and His perfect ways.

If you want to have a relationship with God and are not sure how or where to start, see my previous posts Relationship with God and Relationship with God – Part 2.

And Without Faith…

On By CarmenLeave a comment

As I continue from my last post, The LORD Will Provide, I would like to address the question many of us have asked—What if God doesn’t answer my prayer?

I will attempt to explain by what God says from His Word, the Holy Bible.

Also, I will use examples from my life so that you know a little about at least one person’s faith journey with Almighty God.

First, let me write about what God thinks of faith in Him and then I’ll end with a reminder of God’s sovereignty.

Faith Pleases God

In Hebrews 11, we are told simply that God is pleased with our faith in Him and He is displeased if we don’t have faith in Him.

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for the one who comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He proves to be One who rewards those who seek Him.

Hebrews 11:6

I have personally experienced God answer prayers that came from much seeking and trust in Him alone.

I can even testify to a miracle that I witnessed in my family (see my first post, God Still Performs Miracles) when I was willing to accept God’s will, and lay mine at His feet. I still prayed and asked, but I was resigned to accept whatever He chose as best.

We are told that we only need faith in God the size of a mustard seed. (Matthew 17:20)

This means that if we haven’t yet walked with God in faith, it’s okay to start with even an ounce of faith in Him.

Trusting God without knowing the outcome is blind faith. And we will have to walk with God not knowing but trusting.

Sometimes, our faith walk will be hard and we will have to go through difficult circumstances that we have no control over.

It is when we lay it all at the feet of Jesus, and trust Him blindly, that we position ourselves to see God’s blessings.

Then, as we see Him move and change our lives for the better, our faith increases.

By the way, God will continue to grow us up in faith with more challenges until we know that we know God is real and He loves us.   

God Gives Us His Best

Sometimes we don’t get the answer we are looking and praying for in our lives, but this does not mean that God has not heard our prayers or has abandoned us.

This may be a sign of Him wanting us to wait until we are ready to receive His blessing.

For His good reason, He has us wait until He has worked on us, somebody else, or even the situation so that there is no struggle or harm when He says yes.

When His answer is no, it is because He loves us and what we’re asking for will not be good for us.

I have seen God shut doors firmly to what I was praying and asking for.

One of them was a relationship that I wanted to turn into marriage and the other was a business that I had started and wanted it to grow to where I could provide for myself financially.

I held onto both of them and worked at them both for a while even though I didn’t see good results and was distraught over the idea of losing them.

Eventually, I couldn’t hold onto them any longer, and although painful, I knew I had to give them up and wait for God’s best.

I still believed that God loved me dearly, so I let go of what I wanted and trusted God for my future.

I didn’t know how or when God would provide, but I knew He was faithful to His word.

God’s goal was to first work a great transformation in my life. He started changing my thinking, my desires, as well as my behavior—to become more like Jesus.

I finally came to a point that I didn’t want anything in my life that was not a part of God’s will.

As I continued to seek after Him, read His word, and rely fully upon Him, I began to see that God had a better plan for me and resigned myself to wait for it.

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
    They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
    They will walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31

This scripture verse tells us that waiting upon the LORD for His best in our lives will bring us new strength, courage, and joy.

Today, I am happily married to a man who seeks after God, loves me dearly, and is absolutely my greatest love and best friend, besides God.

As for my vocation, I work from home (as I have wanted for many years) and I am free to serve God in various capacities, one of which is writing this blog.

I find great satisfaction in my life and I have not had to work so hard for it as I did in the past.

God has given me better than what I asked of Him, a lot of what I didn’t know I needed, and a life filled with deep joy, peace, and gratefulness to Him.

Thank You, my LORD Jesus.

God is Sovereign

God has always been and will always be LORD of all. He created all things for His own purposes.

He lovingly created mankind in His image and gave us dominion over all the earth.

This dominion does not mean that we are in charge or that we are capable of running things on our own.

Scripture tells us this very thing.

Many are the plans in a person’s heart,
    but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.

Proverbs 19:21

Therefore, it is wise for us to humble ourselves and submit our lives to our Creator.

If we cannot bring ourselves into existence, how can we be so bold to think that we have all the answers and ability to achieve our own desires and goals?   

How often have we…

made plans and changed our minds?

started something and could not finish it?

planned and executed precisely an idea only to see it fail?

I have done all of the above and I’m certain many would say the same.

We do not know what the future holds, only God does.

God has a purpose for everyone and everything He has created.

So, it is best to ask His will for our lives, follow Him completely, and be willing to make adjustments in our plans while we wait to see Him unfold His purpose for us.

It only requires our love for Him, our submission to Him, and faith in Him.

Let’s be thankful when He tells us yes, patient when He makes us wait, and submissive when He tells us no.

God makes all things (good and difficult, emphasis mine) work together for those who love Him and are called for His purposes. (Romans 8:28)

If we can’t look back and see God’s purpose and we still wonder why God allowed certain hardships in our lives, I am certain we will know one day when we follow Him and make it to Heaven.

I hope this message encourages you to keep faith in God and allow Him to work in your life no matter how difficult the circumstances.

Please join me for my next post, The Heroes of Faith.

May God bless you.

I’ve included a beautiful song by one of my favorite Christian groups.

If you want to have a relationship with God and are not sure how or where to start, see my previous posts Relationship with God and Relationship with God – Part 2.