feeling contrite?

..."This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word."
~Is. 66:2

I almost passed this verse by, but stopped to ask some simple questions and look up a few words in the dictionary--I want to share the picture of God I saw.

Who does God esteem? (esteem means to think highly of, to set a high value on; to regard with reverence, respect, or friendship….to think that the God of the universe would feel this way about His creation!) The person who is humble, contrite in spirit, and trembles at God's word.

Wow, I thought. That’s who God thinks highly of--not those who obey perfectly, not those who are beautiful, eloquent, smart, full of good deeds, assertive, bold, have it together, leaders in the church, come from healthy families (you know, all those things that we esteem)… but those who are humble, who can stand in awe of who He is, who don’t think highly of themselves

Then I looked up the dictionary definition for contrite: the word literally means "bruised, crushed, worn down, broken down," those who have a heart that shows sincere remorse for sin, who filled with a sense of guilt and the desire for atonement, those who are worn down and crushed by sin, those who are thoroughly bruised or broken down with grief, and those who are feeling or expressing pain or sorrow for sins

That's amazing, God says that He values me when I'm feeling broken and worn down. It's okay! because when I am lowest, He can be highest, when all my self sufficiency is gone, then and only then can He truly be my God...

What is the last thing God says He esteems? those who tremble (defined as: to shake involuntarily, as with fear, cold, or weakness) at His word, those who are shaken and feel weak when brought into contact with the words of the Lord Almighty… it is these who God esteems.

Ever felt like trembling at God's word? Ever felt too small to approach One so great? Ever felt to crushed, broken, and sinful to be around One who is Holy?

And yet, God says, it's when you are here, humble, low, all pride stripped away... that I think the most highly of you. Sounds crazy and backwards, I know. It's so opposite of the way we humans look at things. But God said it, not me!

Oh, for eyes to see those around us the way He does and for faith to see ourselves through His eyes.