We teach our kids many life skills; skills such as how to talk, how to feed themselves, how to study, and how to have good manners. We teach them how to ride a bike, how to play various sports, and then how to drive.
We also teach them how to get a job. To get a job, they need to shake hands with a firm handshake, look employers in the eye, smile, don't ask about money right away, and dress up a little bit.
That skill of making a good impression gets more and more important as our responsibilities grow. Some people even hire a company to write a good résumé for them. We get pretty good at analyzing what will impress others until we meet a person who isn't impressed by any wardrobe or résumé.
Isaiah 66:2 from God's Word says, "This is the one I esteem; he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word." This is a description of the person God will bless, God will use, and God will employ in His service.
He lists three key characteristics. First, He looks at people's attitudes toward themselves. What's your attitude toward yourself? God is impressed with those who are not impressed with themselves. When you realize that you're His creation and that everything you've ever done or been is His gift, you don't seek glory and you don't seek recognition. You say, "Isn't He something!" God is looking for that attitude in you.
Second, He talks about being contrite in spirit. That's your attitude toward sin. The word contrite literally means crushed in your spirit. This means that you are someone whose sin really makes you sad. You deal with it right away; you don't make any attempt to justify it, rationalize it, or cover it. You're very sensitive about disobeying God. God looks favorably on that kind of person - not a sinless person, but someone who is crushed in their spirit when they sin.
Third, your attitude toward Scripture is important. He speaks of someone who trembles at His Word. He is impressed by someone who is impressed by His Word. Do you still deeply feel the promises, challenges, warnings, and examples of God's Word? That's what impresses God.
There is nothing here about activities, appearance, talent, influence, or money. Three sensitivities that people can't really see and don't often value are that you're not impressed by yourself, you are depressed about sin, and you are impressed by God's words.
To impress a human employer, you may need to work on your handshake, your wardrobe, or your résumé. You need to work on your spirit to impress the Person you really need to impress.