1 Peter 5:6 "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you."

One thing that stands out to me in this verse is the hand of God. The presence of His mighty hand is at work. His hand is creating, shaping, changing, ordering, preparing, directing. His fingerprints may be invisible but the results of his work are obvious. The hand of God is relentlessly at work.

The hand of God is working on each of us now. It is not our job to be the hand of God. We must have faith that his hand is at work even though it is invisible and we must take our position in humility underneath of his hand being moldable to all of His work.

I find in this verse the call to submit, to stop fighting. For me to humble myself under the hand of God means to accept that his hand is at work, that He for sure knows what He is doing. And because of that I need to step down, hand over the process to him, and rest. Striving and performance and unrest often result from feelings of abandonment. For me to humble myself under the hand of God means gratefulness. It means acknowledging that that God has put me in places and seasons and circumstances on purpose and I need to submit to each one in thankfulness.

For me to humble myself under the hand of God means that i need to be okay with where I am at spiritually. This doesnt imply settling for less or becoming stagnant, but it means not allowing shame from incapabilities that i see in myself drive me to perfectionistic standards and stunt my growth. He tenderly asks me simply to keep "casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." It is his work to do, not mine, he only asks that I am moldable to his hand.

He does it all in his timing, for "He has made everything beautiful in its time..." (Ecclesiastes 3:11).  "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." (Philippians 1:6)

There is abundant grace for those who humble themselves before God, who are willing to admit nothingness and put aside fighting his work. "...Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.'" (1 Peter 5:5)

My application is to make a list of some things I feel shame or condemnation in and also a list of some places, circumstances, and seasons that I need to submit to in gratefulness and bring them before God in prayer.