Humility is an essential element in the life of any who would please God.
Jesus is the supreme example. In his letter to the Philippians, the apostle Paul wrote of his Lord and of us: “Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form. And in human form he humbled himself even further by dying a criminal’s death on a cross.”
KirklandThe prophet Micah had bare-bones religion in mind when he reminded all who would listen that believers must be just, merciful and walk humbly with God.
John the Baptist demonstrated humility when his cousin Jesus was gaining the attention of the crowds while he eased into his second-place role. Without an ounce of envy, the Baptizer said of Jesus, “He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.”
Recently, I received a phone call from Joyce Foster, whom I did not know and have never met. She lives in the western portion of New York, not far from Rochester.
She is a 91-year-old Benedictine oblate. An oblation is a religious offering. Given that calling, she is giving her life as an offering. She devotes her time and energy to renewal and improvement, to practical spirituality, to prayer, to the further development and demonstration of Christian virtues, to the sense of community that ought to exist among Christians, and to peace.
Her Christian outlook is ecumenical. She daily engages in Bible study, especially the teachings of Jesus.
We talked of our mutual interest in how God is at work in his world. We spoke of our love for and devotion to Jesus. We talked long. We laughed a lot. And we agreed at the end of our phone conversation that each had been a blessing to the other. Just one of the ways, we mentioned, that God works.
The purpose of her call was flattering and appreciated. (Take one humility point away from the editor.)
She is writing a book on the subject of humility. She wanted permission to quote from a Commentary I wrote three years ago entitled, “Humility in Short Supply.” She had found the editorial by going to the Courier’s website.
Naturally, I was thrilled to hear of yet another example of how the Courier’s online edition is finding readers, even as far away as the state of New York.
“We’re doing a good job here,” I thought. (Take another humility point away from the editor.)
Following my phone conversation with this dear and inspiring woman, I immediately went to the Courier’s archives. I wanted to read again what I said in 2007 that caught her eye. After reading it, I said to myself, “Not bad, not bad at all.” (The editor loses another humility point.)
Among the things I said in the column are these:
— Humility is hard to come by in our society, even among some who are in places of leadership in our denomination and in our churches. Humility is inspiring, and we can only grieve for our denomination and for our churches that too little of it is evident today.
— To be humble does not mean that we debase ourselves by pointing out our inadequacies and emphasizing our unworthiness, though we surely are unworthy even if we are adequate to the tasks set before us. Rather (and here I quoted Golden Gate Seminary president Jeff Iorg), “Humility is appropriate self-appraisal, seeing yourself as God sees you. Humility is adopting God’s perspective on who you are and what you are assigned to do. It is the attitude that emerges from the spiritual discipline of thinking about yourself like God thinks of you.”
— Country music singer and songwriter Mac Davis, I am sure, had his tongue placed firmly in his cheek with his lyrics: “Oh Lord, it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way, but I’m doing the best that I can.” I am sure Davis would be amused that anyone would take seriously his boast of perfection. At the same time, for many, it is “hard to be humble.” Golden Gate’s president has written a book describing nine qualities that define great leaders. One of them is humility. For any of us who do find it “hard to be humble,” Iorg offers hope. His chapter dealing with the subject of humility is entitled “Learning Humility.”
Class is in session, I said to conclude the 2007 Commentary. It still is in 2010. Enrollment is open. Maybe I should register. Perhaps you should, too.