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humility



Philippians 2:1-5  NLT
Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

Daniel 5:20
But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory.

We were on our way to Steamboat Springs for a few days of skiing. The road was icy, and the wind was blowing so hard we went gliding right off the road into the snow. Some of us got out and tried to push the car back onto the road. The combination of slickness and a large snow bank was too much resistance for us. The car wouldn’t budge.

Eventually, a good Samaritan in a four-wheel-drive truck came along and pulled us out.

As I look back on that experience, I am reminded of the words of the apostle Peter recorded in 1 Peter 5:5. “Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.'”

It’s frightening to think of going through life pushing against something you can’t budge. God resists the proud. And I’m sure we’d agree that when a person has God resisting Him, he’s in for a hard struggle. So we each have a choice. Do we want to struggle through life, fighting God in our pride and arrogance, or do we want to go through life in the enabling power of His grace, experiencing His love, mercy, power, and blessing?

How wise it is to walk humbly with our God–and our neighbors–relying on Him to enable rather than resist us in our journey through life. 

Prayer
Lord, keep me from a haughty spirit; I desire to walk humbly with You. Amen.

To Ponder
The same God who resists the proud pours out His grace to the humble.

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