"The high and lofty one who inhabits eternity, the Holy One, says this: I live in that high and holy place where those with contrite, humble spirits dwell; and I refresh the humble and give new courage to those with repentant hearts." Isa. 57:15 LB
Contrite: having or showing deep sorrow for having done something wrong; repentant.
Humble: having or showing a consciousness of one's shortcomings; modest; unpretentious.
Many people want to know that they have significance and that they are noticed by others but, for whatever reason, they find themselves on the fringe of society. These are the kind of people who flocked to Jesus. They were the poor, mostly with a minimum of education, without hope, utterly despised by the rich, the Pharisees and the rulers. Some of the despisers eventually accepted Jesus as savior but because of their sense of self-sufficiency and worldliness they had a more difficult time becoming humble and contrite, to be broken in spirit before God. The same kinds of obstacles that today some allow to block their way to Jesus.
What does it mean to be broken in spirit? To me it means I had to humbly admit that I had reached the point of spiritual bankruptcy. At a time when I should have been comfortable with my life and when, externally, it appeared as though I had the world by the tail and was dragging it toward Utopia, I was miserable. I had a fine loving family, doing well in my profession, financially stable, personally healthy. What was not to like? What else could I possibly need or want to make my life complete? Yet, spiritually, my inner being was full of discontent and loneliness. Strangely, though surrounded by friends and family, I felt alone.
God knows our hearts. He arranged for situations and used willing Christians to bring me face to face, so to speak, with Jesus. God has proved to be everything, and more, that he claims to be.
My outlook on this life changed radically. In a very real sense responsibility shifted from me to Jesus; he has the perfect plan for my life. (Not a plan for a life that will be free of difficulties.)
Perhaps someone is reading this and is in a position of doubt and a sense of separation from God as I was. Maybe you are struggling with a deep sense of hopelessness, a serious medical problem or facing death or any problem you admit you can't handle. If you know in your heart you do not have the spiritual strength to overcome your difficulties; that your only hope is in God, then you have reached brokenness of spirit. God is not remote; he is as close to you as your own heart. He is the answer. Confess your need for God, confess that you have sinned and that you need Jesus to take away those sins. "All who call on the name of the Lord will be saved."
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Miscellaneous
In the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi there is a vending machine that dispenses gold bars.
Just in case you left home without enough gold bars?
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