Broken and Contrite
Psalms 51:15-17
O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. For thou hast no delight in sacrifice; were I to give a burnt offering, thou wouldst not be pleased. The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
Matthew 6:25-26
Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
I’m aware that it may seem these two passages are unrelated. However, as I came upon them this morning, I felt each was intended specifically for me and where I am in my life and in my faith journey right now. Several weeks ago, I began an “adventure” that I was not sure was the right thing for me to do. At one point, I asked God to please shut every door except the one I was to go through – I trust God – just not myself! And He did exactly that. His intention for me is so very clear it’s as if it were a headline in the newspaper!
I sincerely believe, though, that God fulfilled my request because of the “work” He has been doing in me leading up to this great revelation! I had indeed had my spirit broken – God took me to a place where He was the only one who could know and understand my heart and mind. Contrite? Webster’s defines it as: Feeling regret and sorrow for one's sins or offenses; penitent. My primary offense was not trusting enough in what Jesus said in Matthew. He said not to be anxious about anything – because God is in charge.
It is only when we are broken and contrite that we can fully live out trusting completely in our God. For me, it was a matter of giving up the need to be in charge. As the oldest of 5 children, and having the skills and abilities of a “natural leader,” this has been an excruciating challenge for me! Let God be in charge? But . . . What about . . . .? And . . . I bet you know exactly how to complete those statements for your own life.
God designed us with a specific purpose in mind. He made plans for us so much greater than we can even imagine! We aren’t able to fulfill our purpose or follow God’s plan until we yield to Him. Not until we allow God in to be in charge, do we begin to see that we have limited Him by assigning human limitations to Him. When we make Him like us, we limit our own potential too! We need a God bigger than us, bigger than the world, bigger than the universe.
My prayer today is that you will offer the God of the universe your heart and mind. And that you will yield to Him the amazing and wonderful plan for your life.
Mary
