Confession: I had just started experiencing success in my business when I first ran across Deuteronomy 8. (Go ahead and read it first if you aren’t already familiar.) It was right then that I decided I would read that passage every Thursday morning.
Thursdays are the day commissions & bonuses are paid in my primary line of work. As the numbers grew each week, it became easy to pat myself on the back…while just months before, James and I were living paycheck to paycheck, praying God would stretch our finances so we could squeak by that week.
I was amazed how quickly I allowed pride to creep in. Instead of praising God for His provision, I started praising myself for my accomplishments.
Yikes.
But I’ve experienced this passage first hand. It’s easier to remember God in struggle because we must depend on Him for every step. Life is so uncertain, we know He must command our destiny because we can’t make it happen on our own.
But here’s the truth:
We can’t make it through life’s highs without God’s power and energy anymore than we can face our struggles without Him.
Proverbs 30:8-9 reminds us, “Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.”
When things are going well, temptation will arise to forget Him.
To think we accomplished success in our own strength, when it was Him all along.
To forget how He had carried us through all the hard times.
And we can’t take that risk.
God’s power in us is the source behind every dollar we earn, every position we acquire, and every accomplishment we meet.
So yes, as servants of Christ, our job is to deflect the glory to Him.
But how insignificant is that small sacrifice when we remember how He gave His all for us?
And how significant is that small sacrifice when we realize that giving God the glory He deserves could create curiosity in someone around us to take steps toward salvation?
Join us in memorizing Deuteronomy 8:18 this week to have the truth of our Power source hidden deep in our hearts. [Members, remember to head to the Downloads page of the member portal to get the image of this verse for your smart phone’s wallpaper.]
Prayer:
Dear God, thank you for carrying me through all my struggles and any of my success. God, I pray you would prevent me from becoming prideful. Your Word says you give grace to the humble, but oppose the proud (James 4:6). Father, I know I can’t make it without Your grace. I can’t do life on my own. I need You to guide me. Give me the courage to deflect all glory that comes my way to You, so that others may come to know You. Amen.
