And [God] humbled you and allowed you to hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you recognize and personally know that man does not live by bread only, but man lives by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord. … Know also in your [minds and] hearts that, as a man disciplines and instructs his son, so the Lord your God disciplines and instructs you. (Deuteronomy 8:3, 5 AMPC)
God allows us to be humbled and hungry so that we can learn that He is our only source. Proud people will not open their hearts and minds to learn because they see themselves as know-it-alls.
Because He loves us, God humbles us. If we will yield, we can learn from God and grow in intimacy with Him. “Know also in your minds and hearts that, as a man disciplines and instructs his son, so the Lord your God disciplines and instructs you” (Deuteronomy 8:5). But the proud are deprived of all of these blessings.
Verses 11-20 add a warning about forgetfulness. Success tends to make us think we have accomplished something in our own power, which stokes our pride. Twice we are told to “beware”…
- …of forgetting that God is our Provider
- …of thinking we are our own provider
Humility keeps us dependent on God and increasingly intimate with Him. Pride pushes God away.
Check out my series of posts about forgetfulness called Fading Gratitude.
I address the pride issue for leaders in a post called Don’t Putrefy Your Leadership, and in a video Healthy Leaders Ask For Help.
Craig T. Owens 