Humility

For about the past week I have been participating in a program called Intensive Elective Training. This is an 18-week track that has three six-week phases. The first of these is the Spiritual phase.

This first two weeks of Phase One has been all about humility. Our assignment includes reading a book, listening to sermons, writing papers, Bible study, and much more. But that's not the difficult part. A vast majority of the study includes applying what you are learning in practical and unusual ways...

Acts of service for those I view myself better than, along with secret things that I wouldn't normally want to do have caused me to realize how much of an entitlement-mentality I have. "I shouldn't have to do that," or "I'll let someone else fill in," have been thoughts I have frequently had. I am being challenged to abandon those mindsets and embrace a servant's attitude, like Christ.

Another part of the program is that I keep a tally of how much I complain each day. This has made me see how ungrateful I can be, and has caused me to be more appreciative of the things that I have been given. In conjunction with this, I am required to take 2 cold showers and meanwhile list 10 things I am grateful for and also pray for the persecuted church. This has helped me to see how self-focused I am. I don't go through even close to what they go through, and yet I complain at the small frustrations of every-day life. This has helped me to see how truly blessed that I really am to live where I have all that I need.

Prayer and encouragement for others has really helped me to turn my focus off of myself. I see more clearly that my life is not about me, but about how I can be a servant of all. I serve because of the love that Christ has given to me, so that I may show that love to others and help them to love Him in return.

Are you operating in humility? I encourage you to look inwardly at your motivations. Do you work to make yourself greater, or are you preferring others and putting convenience or temporary comfort aside in order to make Christ greater through you? This week, I encourage you to join me in seeking the Lord as to how we can become more humble. God cannot use us when we are full of selfish pride. Will you let Him use you?

In Him,
Michael