HUMBLED BY LIFE
Scripture Reading - Isaiah 2:11 KJV
The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
As we (ihlcc) were observing a certain pattern of a friend of ours we prayed unto the Lord for help. We really didn’t know how to help this particular individual but we knew the Lord has all the answers for the whole world and Jesus has the right answer for each person in the world. While pondering this situation it seemed to us that the Lord spoke, “Life will humble all people and in that moment if the person doesn’t humble themselves there is a problem”. We recalled countless other people that made mistakes along the way and found this to be true. The thought is we all go through tough times because something hit us unexpectedly but the way we handle the situation will determine the way we handle a similar situation next time. We know that people make mistakes in life and sometimes bad things happen but what we do in those rough times will make all the difference. As this scripture explains men can be “Humbled by Life” when our confidence is shaken due to unexpected misfortune. This could be losing a job, the loss of a close loved one or a severe injury or countless other things. Anytime something happens to us that throws us back for a loss it is considered the “Humbling of Life” but the key is not exactly what happened but what will we do in the midst of the circumstance. Quite often these setbacks are the appropriate time to take introspection with God. When calling upon the Name of Lord when we are suffering from a lack of understanding we can come through the fire with strength and better understanding. This is what the Lord is expecting and very common for the true believer in Christ. Notice 2 Chronicles 33:12 KJV which states, “And when he was in affliction, he besought the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.” All affliction, persecution, tragedy and misfortune should cause us to draw deeper into Christ Jesus because He is our refuge but many do not. It is not God’s will for tragedy or misfortune to happen but He is always there to comfort and help us. We see many individuals who blame circumstances or they already have an answer that suits them about why things worked against them. This is discouraging because in our own life we (ihlcc) could recall the mistakes we made along the way that could have been avoided if God’s Wisdom was applied. Sometimes it was having the wrong attitude or putting too much trust in other men or maybe we simply just didn’t pray about the situation before we gave an answer (commitment) to do it. The problem was not always our fault but we learned from being “Humbled by Life” that we can have corrective actions that will keep us safe in the future. The true tragedy is how many people don’t open mindedly seek God’s wisdom about why things happen with a humble heart. We have seen many people come to God with a presupposed position about what happened and why according to their own knowledge and understanding void of an open heart to make personal changes in their own life. The problem is man’s wisdom is often wrong and it pales in comparison to God’s Wisdom. In our own case the Lord has often told us not only what to do but He also showed us how we can be better insulated from mishaps in the future. The better understanding we have of God’s Kingdom and the specifics about how the enemy works the better we can see things coming at us from a far off. Yes, by being “humbled by life” and humbling ourselves to be open to exactly what God is saying (no excuses) we can come through all unfortunate circumstances with peace and a clearer understanding. The question to all people is, “Are you humble before God before you are “Humbled by Life?” because if you are not, the chances of you humbling yourself during the crisis is very slim. Remember we are to be humble in life before God to keep us from being “Humbled by Life” repeatedly. Amen!