When we hear the word humility, what comes to mind? I imagine an older bearded wood carver, shavings caught in his white beard, a twinkle in his eye, and gentle and patient way about him. He’s an amazing craftsman, and he loves what he does so much that he is undisturbed and undeterred from his craft, regardless of what anyone else thinks. He lives deliberately and walks in humility. He is confident and comfortable with who he is. He needs no validation or affirmation because he creates out of his heart and his love for the One who gave him the gift of creativity.
Humility defines is freedom from pride or arrogance. It comes from the Latin word humilis, meaning low. Proverbs 11:2 says, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.” I think of Jesus, who became low — descending from infinite God status — to taking upon the very limited body of a human. Imagine the humility it must have taken to become fully a man with all the realities that are part of who we are — from sweating from the heat; being tired and hungry from walking all day; to having to use bathroom — suddenly thrust upon one who never knew limitation. Imagine the one who spoke the world into being as a newborn baby unable to tell his mother that he was hungry … except to cry. That’s humility personified.
St. Paul says it like this: “Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.” — Philippians 2:5-8
David Ramer said to me the other day, “Humility is the prerequisite to authority at the end of the age. At Voice, we have gone through many changes. Thus, we have been trained in change, so how we respond to situations and people has to be with humility. Constant shifting requires us to walk humbly so that we aren’t offended when things change. This is not easy, but it is a part of the training process.”
Dave said, “The meekest people on earth are the most peaceful, because their souls are at rest.” (Matthew 11:28-29). The Lord’s yoke is easy because it brings rest. It might be uncomfortable at first because we are not used to it and it causes us to have to give up some things we had previously controlled. Humility and peace go hand in hand. Mike Bickel says, “As peacemakers, we are seeking to bring peace and not stoking the flames of fiery arguments. This is when we put biblical conviction above political opinions and arguments.” Matthew 5:9 says that those who make peace are both blessed and called the sons of God.
Bickel also states, “As believers, we must preserve the bond of peace in the spirit of unity. We must be able to disagree with those who hold different views in a spirit of grace that respects and values their dignity.” (Ephesians 4:1-3). Gosh that is a powerful statement right there! It requires humility and a spirit of understanding with an open mind to value and respect others who hold views differing than our own. I strive for this. I am learning every day how to walk in this.
I have wonderful discussions with friends who hold different views than I, and where I once used to immediately jump to a judgment about a social, political or theological topic, I am learning to listen; ask questions put myself in someone else’s shoes. Listening with understanding; not embracing the swirl of reactive drama that so frequently accompanies these types of discussions (especially on social media). [See Proverbs 15:1-2, 16:32, Galatians 5:15, and James 1:19-20 for some further thoughts on this.] My friend, Terry, recently said to me, “It seems as though you are embracing the quietness and simplicity of life.” This was a huge compliment to me because it is something I strive to do, and to see that someone recognized it was pretty cool to hear.
Stewarding humility is keeping track of our emotional state — especially in the anointing of the Holy Spirit — but also in our day-to-day interactions with others. Being melodramatic can cause people to be confused, feel inferior, or dismiss us as overly dramatic and thus our words become irrelevant. People won’t take us seriously. Authenticity and truth is so important to living in humility.
“Clothe yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor.” (I Peter 5:5-6).