Spiritually Poor & Hungry...

"Blessed are the poor in spirit"

Is a man poor if he thinks he's rich?
If a man is rich in his own mind, is he?

There's reality and there's perception.
There's a saying "preception is reality."

How about us with Jesus?

When Jesus is calling the poor in spirit what does that mean?

Let's look at the REALITY first.
Do we know we are ALL poor in spirit?

"ALL have sinned and fall SHORT of the glory of God"

Everyone in their current state is doomed for death.
There is not one person that passes the test of being spiritually rich enough to deserve eternal life.
Do we KNOW this?
Not just with our mind, but with our HEART, with all our BEING, with all our SOUL?

If we truly KNEW this with our heart, mind and soul,
What would we be thinking?
How does that compare to what we're thinking now?

Here's the REAL test...
What do our actions say?

Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night hungry and you couldn't go back to sleep because your stomach was so empty and you HAD to dig up something from the fridge to eat before you went back to sleep?

That's an example of knowing you're hungry and your actions matching what you're feeling.

Are we that way with Jesus?

Do we wake up every morning so spiritually HUNGRY that we're like "I HAVE to have some spiritual food to eat before I can go about my day."
Do we say "I can-NOT operate or function properly without my DAILY bread of scripture."
Do we refuse to start our day without sitting with Jesus?

If we TRULY knew we were POOR in spirit and had the same midnight hunger pains spiritually, how would our actions be different?

Can I propose that if we're not starving for Jesus,
If spending time with Jesus is not a non-negotiable,
Then are we really HUNGRY?
Are we really poor in spirit?

And if we're not,
How can we fix it?

PRAY.
Be clear on this,
You canNOT fix it.
This is a HEART issue,
Only God can change the heart.
We can try to force our WILL to do it for a little bit,
But if our HEART isn't changed,
If in our HEART we don't feel poor,
We're just going through the motions without the right HEART.
You have to truly FEEL, KNOW and be DESPERATE for Jesus,
And only Holy Spirit can help us with that.

So here's a prayer that can help with that.

"Dear Heavenly Father,
HELP!
Help my heart realize how POOR in spirit I am,
Help me realize how MUCH I need You,
Help me feel the difference between a day WITH my daily bread and one without,
Make me DESPERATE for You.

I'm not DESPERATE enough yet,
I keep compromising,
I keep falling short,
I keep putting other things before you.
I mean well,
But I don't do well.
Father, only You can change my heart,
So I invite You to do it in me.

Change my heart Father,
Come into my soul and remove all my idols,
Remove all my fears that push You aside,
Replace it with a HOLY HUNGER,
That wants You and only You.
Make me DESPERATE for You,
So that I may be called poor in spirit in Your eyes.

In Jesus name, Amen."

Cheers to being POOR in spirit!
Who'd a thunk we'd ask to be poor, right? ^_^