I Don’t Feel Blessed When I’m Poor in Spirit

by Anita Wood · Published January 15, 2022 · Updated April 23, 2023

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted. . . Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” Mathew 5: 3, 4, 10.

These words are part of the famous beatitudes message that Jesus preached during His “Sermon on The Mount”. To read the whole passage, click this link. Jesus is telling us here that we’re blessed when we’re sad, blessed when we’ve experienced loss and blessed when we are mistreated.

That’s not usually the way we see it. In fact, to our way of thinking, it’s just the opposite. We’re blessed when we’re happy, when we get to keep what we love and when we’re treated with respect and kindness. These words don’t really make sense until you see them with the eyes of faith.

But Then God Showed Up. . .

I also want to point out that I do think to be poor in spirit can mean to be humble or aware of your spiritual need. This is what I usually see when I peruse the topic. But I believe the beatitudes build on each other. So, the fact that mourn comes after poor in spirit gives us a clue as to its meaning.

With this in mind, I believe it can simply mean to be sad because a loss. Not necessarily related to a sense of spiritual need. I think it loses a lot of application to everyday life when we narrow it down to only spiritual need.

But the most important reason (to me) I believe it can apply to the sadness of loss in general is because this is what I experienced. My father abandoned me when I was very young. And the grief I experienced was excruciating.

But then God showed up and I experienced the kingdom of heaven in my pain. And I came to know Him as never before as my Comforter and Strength and Healer.

The sun exploding through the clouds; poor in spirit. — Photo by Aakanksha Panwar

Energy Is Never Lost

Here’s the thing. If we love God and walk in faith and obedience, we don’t ever lose (or gain) anything in the absolute sense. Energy in the universe is never lost, but simply changes form (think ice to water to vapor as heat is added).

Here is the link if you want to learn more about this phenomenon. In the same way, no matter what we go through, however violent the storm, or hot the fire, we are always blessed if we respond in faith.

When we lose something in the natural realm, we have a marvelous opportunity to gain in the spiritual realm. An opportunity we wouldn’t otherwise have.

In fact, I’m not sure we ever gain in the spiritual without losing in the natural. If we are always only blessed in the natural realm, we will have a dirth of blessing in the spiritual realm.

On the other hand, when we lose something in the natural realm we gain in the spiritual. We gain the presence of God (The Lord is near to the broken hearted, Psalm 34:18). We gain a repentant heart, wisdom, insight, spiritual and emotional strength, and ultimately maturity.

In short, we gain the kingdom of heaven. It’s not automatic though. We have to continue to walk in faith and obedience.

The Presence of God

And when we gain something in the natural realm, we lose in the spiritual realm.

When life gets good and we begin to experience the rewards of wisdom (“long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor” Proverbs 3:16), we will have less of an opportunity to experience the presence of God (the Lord is near to the broken-hearted).

And, therefore, less opportunity to gain a repentant heart, wisdom, insight, spiritual and emotional strength and maturity.

Now, I’m not saying we don’t experience the presence of God unless we’re suffering. But anyone who has suffered well will tell you that His presence is more tangible, sweeter and more appreciated when we suffer.

We come to know Him as our Comforter, our Peace and our Strength in our pain on a whole other level.

This reminds me of King David. When he was running for his life and hiding out in caves and didn’t know where his next meal was coming from, he was blessed spiritually. He was the Giant Killer, Sweet Psalmist of Israel, and a man after God’s own heart.

Flamingo standing on 1 leg; blessed are the poor in spirit

But when all his enemies were dead and he was blessed on every side and his kingdom was safe and secure, his heart wandered. And he became an adulterer and murderer.

Also, it’s interesting to note that the book of Psalms which is such a treasure trove of comfort and encouragement in hard times was written largely in times of distress and discouragement and despair. King David’s pain is our gain.

There’s Always a Balance

There’s always a balance. It’s like one of those old-fashioned scales. The more we gain in one realm, the more we lose in the other. This should temper our rejoicing when we gain something in the natural realm.

And our mourning when we lose something in it. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” Romans 8:28.

God intended it to be this way.

The Levites in the Old Testament were honored to serve God in the temple. They also served as teachers and judges in Israel. And they explained the Torah when it was publicly read.

But they were not allowed to own property in Israel like the rest of the Israelites. “. . . the Levites have no share or inheritance among their fellow Israelites; the Lord is their inheritance. . . ” Deuteronomy 10:9. They did not have a way to earn a living in that agrarian culture.

They had to rely on the tithes of their countrymen. In order to gain in the spiritual realm, they had to lose in the natural.

Pain and loss is often involuntary as in the loss of a job or loved one.

But it can also be voluntary as with spiritual disciplines. Herein lies the value of giving (and prayer and fasting). It’s an opportunity to gain in the spiritual realm, as we voluntarily lose in the natural.

That’s why the apostle Paul says in reference to giving: “Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness” 2 Corinthians 9:10.

When we lose in the natural realm by giving, we gain in the spiritual (righteousness).

Old fashioned scale and gavel; blessed are the poor in spirir

Bane and Blessing Not Absolute

Bane and blessing are not absolute for the Christian. When we’re blessed in the natural realm, we pay a price in the spiritual. And when we’re blessed in the spiritual realm, it’s because we’ve paid a price in the natural.

I think we could benefit from learning to appreciate and even be thankful for hard times as awesome opportunities to gain the kingdom of God they are.

When the loss and pain has passed, the opportunity for spiritual gain will be gone too. So let us learn to make the most of the treasures found in the dark, just as we do in the light. If we don’t, we will have lost twice, in both realms. And our loss will be absolute. Let me explain.

Don’t Lose Twice

Let’s say you lose your job. You can choose to lean into your faith and trust that God is still good. And you can try to learn what He wants to teach you in it. In this way, you will gain wisdom, become more mature and experience the presence of God in a deeper way.

You lost the job, but you gained internal resources that will serve you well in the future. You lost in one realm but gained in the other. Because God loves you and you love Him, He causes you to gain from your loss.

On the other hand, you can choose to be depressed and full of self-pity and shake your fist at God. Now you’ve not only lost in the natural realm (your job) but you’ve also lost the opportunity to grow from your pain (the spiritual realm). So, in essence you’ve lost not once, but twice.

Noone has to tell us we’re blessed in good times. That is obvious. But what may not be so clear is that we have an opportunity to be at least equally blessed in hard times. Just in the other realm.

This is not as clear because the other realm or kingdom is apprehended by faith. For the pragmatic minded reader, you may ask “what good is spiritual blessing when I can’t put food on the table?”

Here’s your answer: Psalm 84:11 and many similar verses says, “no good thing will he withhold from him whose walk is blameless”. Spiritual gain eventually translates into natural gain. In other words, whatever you have on the inside eventually shows up on the outside.