Daily devotional

May 28 - Are you humble (II)

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you.” - 1 Peter 5:6  Scripture reading: Proverbs 11:1-31 Peter continues his teaching on humility in verse 6. He tells us to humble ourselves so that God may exalt us. Pride can be viewed as dependence or confidence in oneself. A person may think he is fully independent of others and self-sufficient. Is this true? Are we completely self-sufficient without any dependence on others? The reality is, no matter where we are in life, we do rely on others. We all appreciate family, friends, employers, customers, retail workers, doctors and nurses and the list goes on. Think about all the people you rely on each day to make your life better and easier. We are not truly alone. There is One Who is actually in your life whether you recognize it or not. The Lord directs all of your affairs by an all-wise Providence. You don’t live in a chance world. Peter brings us to the place where we need to recognize God working in our lives. Humility is having a full dependence on and confidence in God. This verse could be translated allow yourselves to be humbled, under the mighty hand of God. We must permit ourselves to be humbled. We must consent to let God take control. We must surrender to His will as He knows what is best for us. His hand is mighty and powerful. He breaks the power of sin and pride and molds us to be like Christ by His Spirit. He will exalt us in due time. Will you allow yourself to be humbled? Suggestions for prayer Thank the Lord He is faithful and powerful so that we can truly depend upon Him. Praise the Lord that when we humbly submit to Him, He will exalt us in His perfect time.

Rev. Michael Jaatinen is the minister of Mount Zion Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church in Moncton, NB. He graduated from Geneva Reformed Seminary in Greenville, SC. After graduation, he served in the Free Presbyterian Church for 10 years, primarily ministering at a church plant in London, ON. He is married to his wife, Karen, who works as a Christian School teacher. Get this devotional delivered directly to your phone each day via our RP App. This devotional is made available by the Nearer To God Devotional team, who also make available in print, for purchase, at NTGDevotional.com.