I recently discovered a gem! Or, rather, the Lord uncovered it for me.
He led me to begin reading through the Bible chronologically. With, He added, one emphasis: humility. I was to read the Bible each day for a year, with an eye for any teaching on this godly attribute.
“Why humility?” I asked. Of all the themes in the Bible!
“You need this,” He replied.
A 365-day focus on humility? I must have a problem in that area. But I couldn’t deny I was prone to relying on my own strategies for “success” and stereotyping others by appearance and background.
As I looked at myself in the light of what I already knew about true humility, I saw someone who too often overrated self and devalued others. I confessed, “Lord, I’ve become a snob… change me, I pray.”
I hadn’t read far in the Bible before I saw that humility is like a many-sided prism, a true gem—a diamond, even—with facets enough to fill page after page with notes from my daily readings. Facets such as:
The Humility of Teachability
“’Listen now to me and I will give you some advice’… Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said” (Ex. 18:19,24).
The Humility of Inability
“For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you” (2 Chron. 20:12).
The Humility of Last-Place Living
“Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all” (Mark. 9:35).
The Humility of Valuing Others
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others” (Phil. 2:3–4).
With chronic health issues and no gift of hospitality, I dreaded the approaching holiday responsibilities—hosting, choosing Christmas gifts, planning get-togethers…
As I thought about my biggest hurdle I wondered, “What would humility do?” And the answers came swiftly:
- Ask for help (so I did)
- Simplify (rest from the quest for perfection)
- Let someone else plan (my super-host sister)
- Delegate (example: my husband, the great potato-masher!)
- Ask others what they want (to contribute, to do)
- Make it a community effort and success (and it was!)
The result? A significantly more peaceful and enjoyable time for myself and others. In fact, one family member texted, “I don’t know how the day could have been any more perfect.”
You knew it, Lord. Humility was a gem I needed.
