Humility is Sometimes a Tough Row to Hoe

Speaking in planting-a-garden terms, cultivating the soil, which can be rocky, dry and, if by hand is a wearisome task. Then planting the seeds, keeping a watch out for critters that like to eat the new sprouts before they even mature, pulling the weeds that choke out the plant and harvest those taters, carrots, onions, beans, cucumbers and tomatoes. That list is what we planted in our Oklahoma garden.

I’m thinking that God is cultivating our soil, rather, cultivating our spirits to become all He’s destined us to be. He has us in a sort of holy test tube to see whether we will become bitter or better during this planting and harvesting season of our lives. I believe that His goal is to humble us from our self-sufficient ways to depend and trust in Him and His ways.

During these strange, ominous and strained times, we may think that no one understands all we’re doing to survive. How we’re coping. How we’re juggling what to do next for the young ones in our homes to keep them occupied. Maybe thinking that 24/7 together isn’t what we bargained for when we married. And then the frontliners who have given their all may think that not too many even recognize their efforts. But, here is the message that I sense God has for all of us today. He sees. He has a plan.

Remember the children of Israel murmuring and complaining in the desert? We thought we had it bad. They were toting their little ones, rustling their livestock, trying to come up with a new meal plan instead of another day of manna. They didn’t have a decent bed to sleep on. But God had an ulterior motive. To remove pride from them, He had to let them go through stuff to humble them. It was crucial that God prepare them to trust Him as they stepped from the desert into their destined Promised Land. “Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.” (Deuteronomy 8:2) YIKES! Is that what God is doing to us — testing us so that we trust Him?

We are all struggling with pride which is the opposite of trust in God. Pride begs us to believe it all depends on us. Trusting God requires us to place our dependence on Him. And the row to hoe or the road to travel that leads us away from pride and into a place of truly trusting God is paved with humility.

What if God is using these humbling times to get us to a place of deep and unshakable trust in Him? If God sees big things ahead for us, and I believe He does, then He must get the “Round-Up” weed-killer out to get rid of all the weeds of pride. I believe God is giving us “insider” information. First of all, for us to remember He is our provider. Number two — God’s provision for us doesn’t always look like we want it to look. Ugh! Who wants manna day after day? But God knew that was the nourishment they needed. And He knows what we need, too! Number three — man-made bread AND man-made success will never fulfill us. Only God and His Word can seep into the places of our souls to make us fully alive and deeply satisfied.

So, maybe we need to look at what we’ve been planting. How’s our crop looking? How’s our pride level and how’s our trusting-God-level? I pray that our eyes open to how God isn’t trying to break us but rather He is making us ready for the harvest time up ahead. Dear Lord, help us to surrender our wills, our pride, our weaknesses to You and your perfect plans for our lives. We submit to being a humble vessel of honor that gives all praise and glory to You! Amen.

“The meek shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5)
“A man’s pride will bring him low, but a humble spirit will obtain honor.” (Proverbs 29:23)