“It is no great thing to be humble when you are brought low; but to be humble when you are praised is a great and rare achievement.”
A frog came up with an idea of placing a long stick between the mouths of two Canadian geese flying south for the winter so he could fly along, holding onto the middle of the stick with his mouth. A few hundred miles into the journey someone flying by in a small open air airplane notices and remarks, “I wonder who thought of this bright idea?” The frog couldn’t resist and proudly proclaimed by opening his mouth and shouting, “It was Me-e-e-e-e!” Pride cometh before the fall.
Humility is the most difficult of all virtues to achieve; because nothing dies harder than the desire to think well of oneself. Just like the frog.
Pride, more than Satan, himself, is a “master of disguise.” Did you know that depression is almost always disguised pride? It is a reaction to feelings such as “It is such a shock that I cannot be perfect or control myself and others, and I am doing such a bad job of imitating God.”
Self-hatred is also pride. How can one hate himself unless he has fallen from the lofty image that he had of his own self?
Jealously…hating our unrighteousness…obsession on failure…rejection…the feeling that we don’t deserve anything…expecting the worst…being negative are all forms of pride. See how pride is the “master of disguise”?
Now, on the other hand if you are looking for an example of humility, just look at the cross. Humility was a quality prized by the early Christians. However, it was not considered a virtue in the ancient Greek and Roman world. Those cultures esteemed power and authority rather than lowliness, which was only considered appropriate for slaves. This is one reason why Jesus was such a counter-cultural figure in His day. “Being by nature God, He emptied Himself of divine privileges, took the form of a slave, being made in the likeness of man, and humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death on the cross.” (Phil 2:6-8) Jesus is the perfect example of humility; and as His followers, we are called to walk in His footsteps.
It seems that the Apostle Paul’s thorn in the flesh was sent to humble him so that he might not exalt himself as a result of the great revelations given to him by God. Paul’s first desire was to have the thorn removed, and he asked the Lord three times that it might be taken away. The answer came to him that the trial was a blessing and that through the weakness and humiliation that it brought, the grace and strength of the Lord could be better revealed. Paul then wrote: “Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, for when I am weak, I am strong.” (II Cor 12:9, 10)
LIFE LESSON: God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble. Don’t be like that prideful F.R.O.G. But in humility Faithfully Rely On God. Case closed!
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Growing in His Grace,
Len Baker