S51P2- Notes on godliness: transparent helplessness
Psa. 86:1-2
Incline your ear, O Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. Preserve my life, for I am godly; save your servant, who trusts in you—you are my God.
It is interesting how the more God equips us and the more He provides for us, the more we think we can get along on our own. God blessed this man with incredible intelligence, and he had risen to the heights of his field of study. He was an authority in many areas of practice. If asked to name a colleague whose accomplishments or knowledge surpassed his own, he would have been at a loss. His professional life seemed to be one that anyone would envy and strive for. Personally, however, things were quickly falling apart. The more he relied on himself to try to fix his marriage, the more distance he felt between himself and her. Having exhausted his abilities, he got on his knees and asked God for help. Because of his confession of helplessness and trust in God, that marriage was saved.
Scripture tells us that in our weakness, God is strong. [2 Cor. 12:9] One thing that may keep some people from seeking after the Lord is the fact that it will require them to confess weakness. God has a lot of power available to us through his Son, and that may appeal to many. However, access to that power is conditional on our humility. In order for us to behave in a godly manner, we must understand and confess that we are utterly helpless without him. Here, David is giving God reasons to listen to his prayer and act. He is telling God that he is a godly man, and the evidence of that is he is willing to humble himself and trust God to intervene on his behalf. He does not approach God from a place of power but from a place of weakness. This is a man who is poor in spirit and in need of miraculous help. That is how we see his godliness.
Our heavenly Father is not looking for people who are big and bad. He does not recruit based on some badge of toughness that we earn by throwing our weight around. He is looking for people who are willing to fall on their knees before him in submission and humility. Being godly means that we confess our inadequacy without God and allow him to give us the strength we do not have on our own. We put it all out there and stop putting up some kind of front to convince ourselves and others that we are more than what we actually are. The godly person is just real with God without any pretense, especially in weakness. Father, increase in us our transparency and humility so that we can be confident in confessing our weakness to You because we know You will strengthen us.