Humility [part three]

 In Featured, Pastor Paul's Blog

By Pastor Paul Gauche

Today’s Word: ‘HUMILITY’ as in… Part Three of some really well developed, finely honed, and helpful thoughts on Humility.

Several of us were wrestling with the complicated issues of humility. That conversation generated a number of really good questions. Among them: “Who do we know who is really humble?” “What does true, honest humility look like in real life?” It wasn’t long before the example of Mother Teresa came up. Just about every one of us around the table agreed that if we looked up Mother Teresa in her High School Yearbook, she would most likely have been voted “Most Humble.” But she wouldn’t have noticed.

We then asked, “Should we be more like Mother Teresa?” To which we all agreed, “Well, yea, for sure!” But then we quickly realized, “Nahhh, that’s not going to happen.”

Nope. That’s not going to happen. And it shouldn’t happen. Here’s why: If’ we’re content to be simply ourselves, we’ll become more than ourselves.”

The question is not how we become more like Mother Teresa. The question is how we become more like our truest, most essential selves that God is creating. The question is not how we respond to Mother Teresa by doing the things she did. The question is, how did Mother Teresa respond to God’s call in her life that allowed her to live into her essential self, and how is God equipping us to do the things that God calls us to do? That’s humility! And that kind of humility creates big changes in the world. It’s that kind of humility that inspires us to respond to God’s call to live in ways that move us into practicing small, simple, seemingly insignificant, random acts of kindness. It’s that kind of humility that moves us to give up our seat on the bus to someone who is standing. It’s that kind of humility that motivates us to bring groceries to an elderly neighbor. It’s that kind of humility that inspires us to practice the kind of generosity that lives into the next generation.

How is humility being nurtured in you today?

#100days50words

Paul Gauche is the Pastor of Life Transitions at Prince of Peace. His posts are part of his #100days50words project, where he blogs about a different word each day. You can follow his project on Instagram (@pgauche), or on his blog, Thriving Rhythms.

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