Devotion: Humility
Humility
Take a moment to read through Luke 14:1-11.
In my quest to continually examine milestones in my own spiritual journey, I have realized I have not always had a good relationship with the word humility. Fifteen to twenty years ago I understood humility as something one can only attain if you go to the ends of the earth to lose your identity. I also grew up with it as a “weaponized term,” one that was unfortunately overused in the context of enforcing submission to toxic leaders at the time.
Sometimes words can press a weight on your soul that it shouldn’t be allowed to carry. Yet, words can also have a powerful impact for good when redefined and described accurately. When we’re allowed to have curiosity about a word like humility, we can go to the source of truth to relearn what it truly means. This is a healthier place to be when peeling back the layers of how humility shows up in our behaviors.
When reflecting on the Luke 14:1-11 passage, there are some observations that bubbled up from the reading. So I want to share what I see as three actions that Jesus demonstrated to give us a starting point for “how to do humility”:
- People matter more than our perception of them. We read in this passage that Jesus asks the lawyers and Pharisees his favorite kind of question: the rhetorical kind. The kind that stumps its listeners with directness. Should a man suffering from dropsy be healed on the Sabbath?! Well, Jesus did just that. He healed. Humility can come from a surprising act of care.
- Do the caring thing, even when the rules might prohibit it. Jesus again does his linguistic acrobatics by asking, “Wouldn’t you save a child or animal if it fell in well…on the Sabbath?!” The lawyers and Pharisees’ non-answer of silence seemingly tells us they might have elevated procedure and posterity in higher esteem than looking after those in harm’s way. Talk about majoring in the minors.
- It’s probably better if someone puts you in a highly regarded place than if you try to do it for yourself. There’s something about the act of a wise leader recognizing and appreciating someone who has been going about their life quietly doing important things. And what I see here is a mutual exchange of humility in Luke 11:7-11. The banquet host who gives the least-regarded guest an honorable seat gives away their spotlight to lift up another, and the guest who is lifted up has a new opportunity to express humility through gratitude. In either case, it’s about kindness exchanged between people.
I know I have a long way to go to be the kind of person who can consistently and intentionally express humility in this way. Let’s be the kind of people who are always learning from the humility of others and especially from the God-Man who walked his talk, embodying humility.
God, it seems there is more to humility than simply “being humble.” Show us what humility is when we encounter a moment that lets us demonstrate it. Help us to identify the beauty of humility and let it surprise in a good way. Thank you for how you brought life to humility on earth. Amen.
Written by Joanna Clay
Joanna and her husband, Matt, live in Lincoln with their two young daughters, Emery and Madisen. The Clays have been members of the Sheridan community since 2014. Joanna is Senior Content Manager for a San Diego-based healthcare coaching company called Practicing Excellence. She enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, longboarding, binge-watching historical dramas, and connecting with others over life’s big questions.