Humility

Day 3: Today I battle for humility.

Isaiah 40: 28 – “Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of His understanding.”

Philippians 3:8 – “Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ.”

Lord, as I woke my kids this morning, I asked you to give each of them experiences teaching them humility. You have given us everything we have, and the right and just response is to surrender everything back to you. To give you the credit. To give you the glory. May we live with this perspective, Lord!

Lord, wash away any spirit of entitlement within me.

I think of my sweet son praying nightly to be better at basketball. As his skills strengthened, I asked him, “Who do you thank for these gifts that have allowed you to make this top team?” I was surprised to see his hesitation, but I understand that in his young mind, he could see the hours of practices and shooting drills he has given to improving in basketball. (And not to negate how proud of him I am for his hard work – I’ve told him many times!). It’s hard to recognize the fact that God gave him his body, his athleticism, his determination, and his time to practice. This gift was part of God’s will, part of the great story God is writing for his life.

I do this too, like when I said yes to a good thing, and I was frustrated it wasn’t playing out the way I had hoped. Also my entitlement is evident when I put in the time to pray, but my prayers haven’t been answered and I get so discouraged. Who am I to write the story? I’d screw it up!

Lord, I repent of my pride. I can see that the better I know you, the easier it is to surrender to you and trust you. May I be humble like Jesus. May I be humble to see others as important to you and loved by you. I want to build others up and love them like you, point them to you. Teach me how. Transform my mind, transform my heart…I am a work in progress. Thank you Lord. I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.