Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent - March 6, 2012

Matthew 23:12

For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.


To be humble means to know the truth about yourself . . . you are not your success (or as my father used to say to me, "Don't believe all your press clippings!") and neither are you your failures. You are both. You are strengths and giftedness, as well as weakness, brokenness and limitation.

Like mercy (yesterday's scripture), humility does not come to the one who seeks humility. Trying to be humble does not get you there. If that's the track you take, it ends up being just one more way you are controlling the perception others have of you.

Humility, as does mercy, comes by indirection. Acknowledge your weaknesses. Don't do violence to your own brokenness. Discover your limitations. Learn to be at home with who you are, not who you ought to be or who you wish you were.

At the same time, honestly hold your gifts. Don't belittle your strengths. Don't diminish the "you" God has created you to be. Learn to be comfortable with your own strengths without becoming big-headed about them. Acknowledge their origins in God.

The "exaltation" of the humble person does not come from placing that person on a pedestal, or being acclaimed as "great" or "holy" in the public eye. The humble person is exalted in living out the fullness of her/his life with God in the world.

There is something compelling, attractive, and magnetic about such a life well-lived.


For today . . . take a moment to honestly consider your weakness and limitation. You may want to write 4 or 5 weaknesses on a piece of paper. Then do the same things with your strengths or gifts.

After those two movements, hold both of these facets of yourself in prayer. Love both of them. Gently accept that as a human, both are a part of who you are. No need for judgment or condemnation on the one hand, or inflation on the other. Just allow them to be part of who you are. That's it.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dinnerless Camels

Dinnerless Camels Saturday after the Resurrection – April 18, 2020 Transformation does not happen by an act of the will. Responding to an altar call is important for some, but is certainly not the end as much as a new beginning. Benchmark life-events may help nurture us, but one-time events do not have the force to shift the deeply ingrained patterns within us. There are no quick fixes in the Christian spiritual life, no short-cuts to an adult spirituality. Rather, we must take care to feed the inner self, to nourish the soul, to give care to that which is at our center, for this inner self will emerge in the world as a transforming presence. We cannot expect ourselves to live differently in the world if we do not attend to this inward dimension of life. For example, in order not to be overwhelmed by a global pandemic, we must be intentional about ingesting spiritual nourishment that will give us resources to keep us from being overwhelmed by the pandemic flood. We have to ea
Read more

The Pattern Includes Resurrection

The Pattern Includes Resurrection Resurrection Sunday – April 12, 2020 Resurrection follows death. Every time. It is the immutable, God-given pattern for all of life. Death is not the end. Life is the end. In John 11, Martha, the sister of Mary and Lazarus, goes through a litany of titles for Jesus. Jesus tells her straight-out that he is the resurrection and the life. Then he asks, “Do you believe this ?” He is not asking if she believes in resurrection as an idea or as a theological proposition. He is asking if she believes that resurrection and life are God’s established pattern for the world. Affirming Jesus’ resurrection is not enough. Rather are you willing to enter into this rhythm of birth, life, death, and new life for yourself? This is not only new life. It is also real love. English mystic Evelyn Underhill wrote a great deal about spirituality in the last century. She taught both significant religious leaders and ordinary lay persons with a simplicity that I find c
Read more

Ordinary Work

Ordinary Work Good Friday – April 10, 2020 Brother Lawrence communicated with God by going about his ordinary work. For most of us, our “ordinary work” has changed in recent weeks. For Brother Lawrence, ordinary work meant working in the monastery kitchen and repairing shoes in the monastery cobbler shop. For us, “ordinary work” is very different. But this monk’s emphasis remains the same. Whatever we do, God is our center. God is the focus of who we are and what we do. This takes our eyes off preoccupation with the situation around us or off trying to please those around us. When we do our work in this way, we truly do “ pray always ,” as Paul suggested in 1 Thess. 5:17. You cannot “ pray continually ” or “ pray without ceasing ” if prayer is nonstop talking or conversation. But Brother Lawrence discovered the key to continual communion with God. Do everything you do in conscious contact with God. He thought it was a shame that some people pursued certain activities (whi
Read more