Matt's Muzings
Humility as Saint
I have written about three aspects of humility, as creation and as a sinner. These are vital aspects of humility, but are only the preparation for the fullest and most rewarding aspect of humility, as a saint. We often think that if there is no conviction of sin, then I am not sinning, and if I am not sinning then I must be humble. But that is only partly true. We are only fully humble and walking in grace when we are expressing the gifts, voice and calling of God into whatever area of life He has called us.
In its simplest form, it is the fingerprint of God on our life. That He has touched us, and in so doing, we are more than dust. In laying down our weapons, we are not rebels anymore, we are God's children.
This is important because it is not what we do that defines us, but who we are. We are finite, limited and weak rebels who have laid down our weapons against God and accepted His pardon, and not just His pardon but His adoption back into His family. What we do is an expression of who we are. Who we are is what defines us.
When what I do defines me, then my job is my identity. I have no greater value or place in the world than the work that I do. However, if my value and place in the world comes from God, then I can express His presence in my life in any way that He calls me to. I am a steward of His presence in me, and thus any act of service or love to others is an expression of who He is.
An awareness of His hand in my life gives me a place, a sense of value that I bring to this world. I am not just taking up space, there is a purpose for my being here. His touch is what transforms the commonplace and menial and infuses it with life. When we read in the Gospels that Jesus chose twelve "to be with him", their being with Him was not some extra privilege they enjoyed. It was the heart of their discipleship and learning. It is what gave them authority. His presence was what gave them authority.
ON THE PERSONAL SIDE
This area of humility has been a hard one for me. When I was growing up I got the idea that if I was good at something, I would cause pain in others. I saw how my being good in sports caused pain in my family. I didn't want to hurt anyone so I refused to let myself be too good at anything. This stopped me from accepting any of my gifts and I actually felt embarrassed about them. This wrong idea stopped the grace of God from being at work in my life. (Remember, God gives grace to the humble, and humility is accepting His gifts in us.)
It is only in these last years that I have even begun to be comfortable with myself to the place where I will let myself be what I am and not hinder the grace of God at work. This was part of my struggle in writing books. As I began to have several books published, I didn't want my name out there. I wanted to hide the gift. God had to deal with me and I had to accept that I am a writer and that is an expression of His grace in my life. It does not make me special, it only reveals who He is in me.
I realized for myself that human beings are never happier than when we are expressing the deepest gifts that are truly us and are truly Him in us. When our gifts flow out of who we are and are not feeble efforts to try and justify a life we know is broken, then and possibly only then do we know the fullness of the grace of God. Then and only then are we walking in humility.
Some will think I am saying that everyone has to become a minister to see their gifts work. I am not saying that at all. Whatever you do, whether it is business, dancing, writing, government work, health care, raising children, do it as an expression of God's touch on your life. When what you're doing is an expression of love for God, others can't help but take notice. As Francis of Assisi said, "Preach the gospel constantly and, if necessary, use words."
CONCLUSION: How the three areas are linked together
Humility as Creation God is greater than our weaknesses, limitations and mistakes.
Without the humility of a sinner, we could get humiliated and think we repented. We could find ourselves in a hard situation with no way out, business going under, sickness or an accident, and call out to God for help. He works by His power to help us and we are grateful but see no further need for help, or at least until we are weak again.
Without the humility of a saint, we could live as a speck of dust and think, I am nothing. If we did make a mistake and hurt ourselves or others, it very often turns to shame and we feel like we shouldn't be allowed to live.
Humility as a Sinner As we lay down our weapons, God has found a way to forgive our rebellion.
Without the humility of creation, we would think that all mistakes are sin and feel a sense of shame with a desire to repent for being human. We can't repent of being weak and limited - human.
Without the humility of a saint, we would think God's main purpose is to remove all sin and clean us up. We get back to 'no sin', and think that is all there is to life. If we did see our gift, we would hate the gift and keep repenting of the pleasure we get out of it.
Humility as a Saint God has limited himself to working with and through us.
Without humility of a sinner we could misinterpret God's gift as God's pleasure in us. God's gift at work in our life does not automatically mean God is pleased with us. Look at ministers who see many people get saved in their ministry and yet are involved in some area of sin. God will not take back his gifts from us, they are given unconditionally to us, we just won't have grace to walk in them if we are not walking in the fullness of humility.
Without the humility of creation we would think we had to do it / know it all, instead of just walking out our part. We would think we had to have all gifts in us and there would be no place or need for anyone else. Or, we would be afraid of failure or not knowing what to do and this would create conformity.
Join me in seeking the fullness of humility. In making it a part of my life. In finding a greater joy and grace in life and a deeper relationship with Jesus. Come and let us humble ourselves and be a fragrant aroma of His humility to the world.