Zephaniah 3:12, 15 But I will leave within you
    the meek and humble.
The remnant of Israel
    will trust in the name of the Lord.
The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you;
    never again will you fear any harm.

It struck me that the same terminology is used in referring to humble and lowly people and to the Lord, the King of Israel. The same thing is said in different ways in other places, but it is clear that God is with the humble, not with the proud. In fact, pride is perhaps the single greatest hinderance to salvation. I keep coming back to this truth, but salvation requires acknowledging that you need it, and that you can’t save yourself. There are literally countless stories that illustrate this, but a famous one is that of John Newton, the author of the lyrics of Amazing Grace. He went from being the captain of a slave ship, one of the most despicable occupations, to being a pastor, and penned the words to perhaps the best-loved hymn in the world. If he had not humbled himself before God as his ship was in danger of sinking in a storm, he would indeed not have been saved, on any level, and would today have been rotting in hell. This is why Jesus so famously said that “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” (Matthew 19:24) Materially wealthy people are very likely to trust in their wealth, not realizing how ephemeral it really is. It is much easier for someone who has nothing in this world to depend fully on God. If you want to be with God for eternity, you need to realize that you have nothing valuable apart from Him even now.

I didn’t grow up in poverty, exactly, but it certainly wasn’t “the lap of luxury.” That said, many of my Japanese friends as a child thought we were rich, because compared to them, we were! We were supported by the mission board on an American framework, when Japan was recovering from the devastation of WWII. As an adult, I have had times of fairly major “pinch,” financially speaking, but God has always come through. At this point, various things have combined to the point that we have fewer financial worries that ever before. I am grateful, and at the same time I am aware that we are no less dependent on the grace of God than when we didn’t know how we were going to get the next meal on the table. I want to be one of those who are with my Lord and King even now, before I get to heaven!

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for Your abundant supply of everything we need, whether we see it with our physical eyes or not. Help me walk in constant awareness of my dependence on You, resting, relaxing, and rejoicing in You, just as You have told me to do, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!