Jer 17:5 This is what the Lord says:
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,
who depends on flesh for his strength
and whose heart turns away from the Lord.

The section from here through verse 14 doesn’t seem to fit what we expect when we think of Jeremiah. It’s kind of like it got misplaced from Psalms! However, it’s another indication that God says the same things to different people at different times. The fact that this seems so similar to Psalm 1 is no accident, because it is true, and God’s truth doesn’t change, whatever people say about it. This verse echoes many that talk about trusting in princes and the like, but it hit me slightly differently. We aren’t in trouble only when we trust in other people, we are in trouble when we trust our own flesh, our “natural abilities” as it were. The reason is that trusting in anything other than God deflects our attention away from the God who created us and gave us whatever abilities we might have. It is when we are most aware that we can’t go it alone that we are most likely to be close to our Creator. That’s precisely why God told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) It is not uncommon for people with severe medical circumstances to be deeply in love with Jesus and spiritually intimate with Him to a remarkable degree. That is certainly true of Aldo McPherson, who helped write a book I just finished. He was severely injured in a traffic accident, but his experience of heaven while he was clinically dead did not end there, to the point that he meets with Jesus frequently, in dreams and in times of private worship. He has no reason whatsoever to trust in his flesh, and his trust in the Lord is truly awe-inspiring. When, or even whether, he will join his mother in speaking to large groups is up to the Lord, but his faith has been an example and inspiration to her, and to many others. This verse speaks of a curse, but being deprived of such fellowship with the Lord when it is actually available is a curse in itself.

I know I have been deeply challenged and motivated by reading that book, but the test comes in how much I let that change the way I think, speak, and live. I have a horrible track record of trusting in my flesh, particularly because there were so many things I could do, but advancing age is thankfully putting a damper on that. I need to be grateful when God enables me to do anything, and not complain when I find I can’t do something. I’m not to discount the abilities God has given me, but I must maintain sharp focus on the reality that it all comes from Him and is not generated by me. I am finishing up my school teaching this year, but there are many other things the Lord has for me to do. I need to create a mid-term test to be given next week and I need to start working on choosing the pictures to use in my August photo exhibit. I also need wisdom and skill in cropping and post-processing pictures as called for. I have some new tools for that that I need to learn well how to use. I know that God has already provided everything necessary for whatever He wants me to do, but I’ve got to be humble enough before Him to recognize His provision and apply it as He intends, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder, and for how You continue to grow me. Thank You for Your patience with me. I would have given up on me a long time ago! May I indeed depend totally on You and not on myself or anything else, so that Your strength may indeed be manifested in my weakness, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!