The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise. Psalm 51:17

This is a wonderful verse, and I have often thought about what it means to me in my daily walk. I have been guilty of terrible pride at times in my life. I was never a bully or a guy who wasn't able to pass a mirror without admiring his reflection, but I was just as full of myself. I was shy and pretty heavy as a young guy, and though I participated in sports a little and was pretty physical, I always endured the insulting remarks from those who just seemed to hate fat people. Fat is just a word, but to those who struggle with it from day to day, it can be an obsession. As a young kid, my feelings were constantly hurt by other kids. I was verbally pushed aside by others who would have nothing to do with a 'fatty.' It drove me to try to 'fit in,' and I would occasionally sacrifice my better judgment to do so. I never even tried a cigarette or drank or any type of drug, but there are other ways to sin. I tried to be good at lying and manipulating for a couple of examples, but they had their rewards. That old saying that kids can be cruel is unfortunately true from my experience, but the opposite is also true, and the kindness I experienced in life from some of those who came to my defense and befriended me will be remembered by me for life. The kids who led me to Jesus were like that. I saw Him in them. They themselves of course were flawed like me and far from perfect, but I saw many glimpses of Him in them. It is what brought me to Him, His goodness. My heart became broken and I turned to Him. I'm not terribly heavy now, like I was when I was a kid, but I've discovered people can still be cruel without provocation.
So can you just one day say, "Okay, I'm gonna be broken and humble today." Not really. That becomes a false humility. It's like anything that's worth having. It comes from Him. We need to ask for it. Arriving there might not always be a pleasant experience, but the end result is a closeness with Him that is the best state of being. Just my opinion, and I'm not saying a person has to be all mopey about it either. It can and should be a joyful way to be really, despite the popular notion. The Amplified Bible version renders Psalm 51:17 this way;
"My sacrifice [the sacrifice acceptable] to God is a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart [broken down with sorrow for sin and humbly and thoroughly penitent], such, O God, You will not despise."

Trent Reznor, the lead singer for "Nine Inch Nails" was quoted as saying, "The biggest revelation I've had about my own life is that I've done everything I've ever wanted to do, and I'm still pretty miserable."

That isn't a terribly surprising statement to those of us who trust Jesus, especially those who come to trust their hearts to him at an older age. Jesus said, "... to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it." Luke 9:23-24
Sin and the pursuit of self are one in the same, and they are both deceptively easy to fall into. The different ways that the enemy can deceive and manipulate to make sin appealing are as available as the number of people there are for him to try to devour. The prideful wanting of his own way has been mankind's problem from the beginning. People think they can better themselves and make themselves happy. I was never able to do that, no matter how hard I tried. The only way to have any peace is through faith in Jesus Christ, by the grace of God.

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." Hebrews 11:6

Rom 5:1-3Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Romans 5:1-2