Resisting...or blessing

"But he giveth more grace.  Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but he giveth grace unto the humble." James 4:6

Good morning, dear friends!

Pride is such an ugly thing, indeed.

There's something about needing to depend on other people, for things that normally I can do myself, and find out all of a sudden that I can't, that makes my pride flare up.  I always want to do more than I should.  It's hard to sit down in a chair, or lie down in a bed, and have other people take care of me.  Even though I can, and am supposed to walk, I can't clean, or take a shower, or even get in and out of bed without a struggle, and some help.

It's hard to admit, that I can't.

The world considers "self-made" men, or confident, charismatic figures to be the measure of success in this life.  If you must rely on someone or something else to get you to the point where you are successful, then you are weak.  The world measures success by pushing human limitations to the extreme, until those who manage to climb to the top can proudly proclaim, "I did this!"

How foolish and arrogant to believe that, as the frail humans that we are, we can do anything worthy of acclaim, all by ourselves.  After all, people who say they "pull themselves up by their own bootstraps," had to start off with a pair of boots.  Where did those boots come from, anyway?

As my hand has been forced for the last few days to rely on God and on others, I realize how much I have adopted this worldly mentality toward accomplishing goals, any goal, whether spiritual or physical, relying on my own abilities, rather than on the strength of the Lord.

There are so many Bible verses that speak toward a Christian trusting in the Lord and His strength, but the one at the top of this blog spoke volumes to me this morning:

"God resisteth the proud, but he giveth grace to the humble."

I did a little study this morning on the word "resisteth" used in this verse.  It can mean "to range oneself against," or "to oppose."  Webster's definition of "oppose" is very interesting:  it means "to disagree," or "to try and stop or defeat," something or someone.  Older definitions include "to place over against something so as to provide resistance."

In short I cannot rely on my own strength, my own abilities, my own intelligence or wisdom, and hope that God will not set Himself in opposition to me.  I must choose:  will I try to be the lord over my own life in my pride, or will I let God be my Lord?

As much as it is true that God will oppose me if I choose my ways over His, the second part of that verse is also true.  God promises to give "grace" to the humble: His favor and blessing.  That is the place that I want to be today.  I want to be in God's hands, being used by Him to be blessed and be a blessing.

I cannot in my pride, resist Him, and expect to find His blessings in my life.

As I sit on the receiving end of His blessings today, I discover once again the joy of loving family members and faithful friends, who delight as much in giving as receiving blessings.  I enjoyed meals lovingly prepared by others, and shared in the joy of closer times with my family.  If only I would just get out of the way, and let others help.

May the Lord help me today to rely on Him, and the help that He sends from others' hands, and remember that this is all part of His blessings that He loves to give toward His children.

And when I am "back on my feet," may God help me to continue to rest and trust in Him for my daily help, instead of trusting in myself and my own abilities.