“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”  Matthew 5:3

The first word Jesus spoke in the Sermon on the Mount was the word HAPPY! The Greek word for bless is “makarios,” or happy. And we are happy, Jesus said, when we are poor in spirit. This means depending humbly on God instead of on myself. This lesson looks at five ways to do that: 1) I depend on God’s wisdom, not mine; 2) I depend on God’s strength, not mine; 3) I depend on God’s timing, not mine; 4) I depend on God’s defense, not mine; and 5) I depend on God’s wealth, not mine.

Open your group with a prayer.

1. Our lives are blessed when we depend on God’s wisdom and not our own. We must acknowledge spiritual helplessness. Depending on ourselves leads to flopped, failed endeavors, resulting in painful, wasted time. Is there a time you thought whatever you did was right, but it ended so wrong? What might you have done differently, according to Proverbs 3:5-7?
2. Our lives are blessed when we depend on God to be our shield and defender. We demonstrate enormous maturity by being silent before our accusers. Everyone experiences being misunderstood, criticized, judged, and naturally we want to defend ourselves. Discuss the five metaphors in Psalm 62:5-7. What are they? What do we gain by running to God instead of relying on ourselves?
3. Financial worries are one of the greatest sources of anxiety. Share a time when you faced a serious shortage and God supplied your need. Are you there right now? How can you depend on God’s wealth and not your own?

Diving Deeper

1. Our lives are blessed when we depend on God’s strength, not our own. In Psalm 71:16a and Psalm 73:26, the psalmist found comfort when his strength was insufficient. How, or in what circumstances, would these verses most comfort you? Consider memorizing them both.
2. Our lives are blessed when we depend on God’s timing, rather than our own. Recall a time you got impatient in God’s waiting room and rushed ahead on your own. What happened? Share how you’ve experienced God’s perfect timing. Realizing a delay is not a denial, what Psalm 31:14-15a remind us to do?