to stand in awe

"Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up."  James 4:10

Ever notice how daffodils bow their heads yet stand so tall?  To me this is a picture of how James 4:10 works...humbled yet lifted up.  How awesome is that?!!  

A song I heard last week spoke to my heart on this topic as well as did this photo of Alex's when I saw it.  All over the yard this year the daffodils are standing tall, but their beautiful heads are bowed low...it takes nothing away from their beauty, however.  Humility in a Christian is a beautiful thing.  The awesome thing that I have realized, though, is the reason why God lifts us up.  

God lifts us up to stand in awe of Him.

So many times I realized that after a trying time, a moment of worship, or just a time of feeling refreshed in the Spirit when I know it was God who "got me through", I say a nice "Thank you, God." and move back to life as normal.  At that moment of being lifted up instead of looking to get things back to normal, my response could have been to stand in awe of a mighty God.  To dwell in His presence and to stand in awe of who He is...just imagine the thought!  What a perfect response to an amazing God!

For any going through a difficult time right now, hold fast to the promise that God will never leave you or forsake you (Deuteronony 31:8).  His word also says in Job 23:10, " But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold."  I think God is trying to get this into my head and heart this week for every thing that I have studied and read and heard all fell into this theme. 

A trying time, a humbled state, a broken heart....no matter what it is, God is here.  He knows and He's not going anywhere.  When the testing is done, and we are refined as gold, He will lift us up...so we can stand in awe.