When things are not going well in significant areas of our life, like weather in light of crops, finances, health, relationships and the like, one of the common spoken or unspoken questions that pop into our mind is why isn’t God answering my prayer. I am doing everything I know how to do (fasting, praying, generous giving, etcetera). The root of such a question lies in our misguided expectations. Consciously or unconsciously, we think God responds to the bartering system by jumping through all His hoops. He then owes us an answer to our prayers. If you think about that, bartering is like putting yourself closer to God’s level, which is called pride.
God says, “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts, and my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9 (NLT2). If we continue to think the way we do, we are dealing with false expectations. Strange as it may sound, God cares far more about our deep-seated humility, unadulterated trust, and loyal love than our good deeds. The foundation of each of these is humility.
Humility is NOT the self-abasement that we think of today. A classic word picture of biblical humility is a powerful race horse that has submitted to the control of his trainer or jockey. Humility has nothing to do with the horse’s worth, ability, or strength. Rather, it is all about how the horse uses its strength to respond to its rider. It is not what a person says about himself but rather his/her relational attitude towards others, even in how the person responds to conflict or abuse their ego. The reason we are told to humble ourselves is that “God opposes the proud but favors the humble.” (James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5, NLT) That’s pretty sobering! Humility is not a loss but a gain, for it puts the believer in God’s favor and saves him from pride that would destroy him and rob him of future glory. Too often we worry about our position and status, hoping to get proper recognition for what we do. Peter reminds us God’s recognition counts far more than human praise. God is able and willing to bless us according to His timing and way. The fact is humility is as fundamentally essential to authentic spirituality as breathing is to our physical survival. Grace is at the root of God’s economy. Paul wrote, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:2 (NLT2)
Jesus modeled healthy humility for us, saying, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. John 5:19 (NLT2) Did you notice, Jesus—the Son of God—had totally abandoned His preferences or control of His life? Paul wrote, “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.” Romans 12:16 (NIV). “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” Philippians 2:3 (ESV). Have we unknowingly bought into the cultural values of our world? Have we lost the virtue of humility?
After going through what I have due to Connie’s graduation, I am more clearly seeing that I don’t have control over my life—and that requires serious humility on my part. I am learning a new level of humility and am so grateful for this that I want to share its spiritual truth with you.
What a great reminder. Oh, how I need humility, to live in His Presence!!