Humility is honestly assessing ourselves in light of God’s holiness and our sinfulness.
Our definition of humility must be biblical and not simply pragmatic, and in order to be biblical it must begin with God. As John Calvin wrote, “It is evident that man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he has previously contemplated the face of God, and come down after such contemplation to look into himself.”
That’s where the following definition can help us: Humility is honestly assessing ourselves in light of God’s holiness and our sinfulness.
That’s the twin reality that all genuine humility is rooted in: God’s holiness and our sinfulness. Without an honest awareness of both of these realities, all self-evaluation will be skewed and we’ll fail to either understand or practice true humility.
[C. J. Mahaney, Humility]
Quote from…
Right now I’m listening to…
We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about…
Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.
[C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory]
…Your love breaks through and reminds me of the hope that I have in You…
The Arms of My Savior
When I’m all alone / And the weight of the world / Is more than I can bear on my own / When all my plans have failed / And I suffered defeat / I’m down on my knees / I can’t get to my feet
Your love breaks through / And reminds me of the hope that I have in You / That I have in You
There’s no other place / That I’d rather be / Than safe in the arms / The arms of my Savior / There’s no other place / Where I can be free / So I run to the arms / The arms of my Savior
When I’m feeling overwhelmed / Like I can’t take anymore / I’ve thrown up my hands / All I see is the floor / I’ve looked to the north / The south, the west, and the east / But as far as I can see / I can’t find any peace
Your grace breaks through / And reminds me of the hope that I have in You / That I have in You
There’s no other place / That I’d rather be / Than safe in the arms / The arms of my Savior / There’s no other place / Where I can be free / So I run to the arms / The arms of my Savior
Life shouldn’t be something to dread / ‘Cause I know You still know / How many hairs are in my head / And so I run to You / And so I run to You
0 to 60 in…
0. I own 27 bibles
1. I like to read (but I’ve been really lazy lately)
2. I wish I were ambidextrous
3. I don’t like wearing my glasses, but certain people have changed my mind about that, so I’ll wear them around a select few
4. I want to serve as a college pastor one day
5. I could wear my rainbows year round if I wanted
6. I’ve never successfully been able to grow my hair out when I’ve wanted to…. I am trying to grow it out right now…. any bets?
7. this is my favorite number
8. I’ve been to the hospital 3 times…. my knee (bad sprain), my hand (first and only time I’ve had stitches) and my eye (severely scratched cornea)
9. I drive a Jeep and love it
10. my favorite bible translations are NLT and ESV
11. I don’t really like my smile
12. I want to learn to play guitar, I own 2 of them
13. I don’t really have a favorite color, but it used to be blue, then red, then it was blue again…most recently it’s been green
14. War of the Worlds, Cars and Superman Returns are the only movies I’ve seen in the theater more than once
15. I’ve had 4 jobs so far (restaurant, UNC Charlotte, Christian bookstore, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association)
16. I’ve had 9 different cell phones and used 3 different services, Verizon has been the best so far
17. and yes, I am addicted to my blackberry
18. but I really want an iPhone
19. or the new blackberry storm
20. I really really really want to move out and get my own place, but I don’t have the monies right now…dumb
21. I went to UNCC for 2 years, I was a Business Management/Accounting major…
22. …then I switched my major to Psychology…right before dropping all my classes and to date have NOT gone back to finish
23. I think I would like to live in Nashville or somewhere in Florida one day
24. I played lacrosse in high school
25. I’ve never had a messy room, but my room has been getting progressively messier the past few weeks
26. I am 26
27. there are 27 days left in the year
28. Oh…and 26 is NOT old
29. looking back, I wish I had played soccer growing up
30. I like snowboarding even though I really suck at it…. I WILL get better
31. the last time I did one of these random fact things was a whole lot easier, not sure why
32. wow…. I’m only ½ way done with this list….
33. I have some kind of A.D.D. I just know it…. and I’m a tad bit O.C.D. with certain things
34. I think Transformers may be one of my favorite movies…
35. oh, and Iron man…Anchorman…21…Blood Diamond…
36. I would like to visit Europe or Australia someday…
37. I wish I had a suite (or sweet) accent
38. I have lived in 2 states, have only been to 6, driven through 10, have friends from at least 12 and would like to visit all 50
39. I like both Macs and PCs…weird!
40. NEWS FLASH!!! I’m far from perfect
41. I can’t swim, never really tried since I’ve never been a water person, but…
42. I like the beach and I’d like to own a pool in my backyard one day
43. I always get complimented on my eyes and my phone voice
44. I am a very open and honest person and like it
45. I own a lot of shoes
46. my brother is my best friend
47. he got married this year…I always knew he’d beat me to the altar haha…and yes that makes me sad
48. I sing in my car, in my room and a few other places, but NOT the shower
49. I love dogs…just not my family’s dog…he’s mean
50. I was voted best all around business student in my class in high school
51. speaking of voting…this was the first presidential election that I have ever voted in…my guy lost haha
52. I am ticklish
53. I do not like my middle name
54. I’m really bad (or good?) at bumping into people and not remembering where I know them from….
55. …I usually remember about 15-30 minutes after running into them
56. I don’t have any “famous” friends, but most of my friends do, so I have connections, sweet!
57. I’m a pretty quick study and like learning new things
58. I do occasionally watch the national geographic channel which happens to be channel # 58
59. I’m a noble steed? What?
60. okay so I know I cheated on a few of these but oh well…enjoy! I was bored!
Aristotle said I am a rational animal; I say I am an angel with an incredible capacity for beer…
When I get honest, I admit I am a bundle of paradoxes. I believe and I doubt, I hope and I get discouraged, I love and I hate, I feel bad about feeling good, I feel guilty about not feeling guilty, I am trusting and suspicious. I am honest and I still play games. Aristotle said I am a rational animal; I say I am an angel with an incredible capacity for beer.
To live by grace means to acknowledge my whole life story, the light side and the dark. In admitting my shadow side, I learn who I am and what God’s grace means. As Thomas Merton put it, “A saint is not someone who is good but who experiences the goodness of God.”
[Brennan Manning, Ragamuffin Gospel, 25]
4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) 6 For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. 7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.
8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
[Ephesians 2.4 - 10, New Living Translation SE]
Who are you? Who am I?
What defines you?
Time to get honest with ourselves.
Speaking of time, I’m out of it. Late. Fun.
I pray that we all experience God’s unconditional love and mercy, showered with grace today.
Grace and peace my fellow paradoxes.
…how we experience his deep and abiding presence in us: by the Spirit he gave us…
11 For this is the original message we heard: We should love each other.
12-13 We must not be like Cain, who joined the Evil One and then killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because he was deep in the practice of evil, while the acts of his brother were righteous. So don’t be surprised, friends, when the world hates you. This has been going on a long time.
14-15 The way we know we’ve been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who doesn’t love is as good as dead. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know very well that eternal life and murder don’t go together.
16-17 This is how we’ve come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God’s love? It disappears. And you made it disappear.
When We Practice Real Love
18-20 My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love. This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality. It’s also the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it. For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves.
21-24 And friends, once that’s taken care of and we’re no longer accusing or condemning ourselves, we’re bold and free before God! We’re able to stretch our hands out and receive what we asked for because we’re doing what he said, doing what pleases him. Again, this is God’s command: to believe in his personally named Son, Jesus Christ. He told us to love each other, in line with the original command. As we keep his commands, we live deeply and surely in him, and he lives in us. And this is how we experience his deep and abiding presence in us: by the Spirit he gave us.
[1 John 3.11-24, the Message]
Love One Another
11 This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another. 12 We must not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because Cain had been doing what was evil, and his brother had been doing what was righteous. 13 So don’t be surprised, dear brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.
14 If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead. 15 Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them.
16 We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion-how can God’s love be in that person?
18 Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. 19 Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. 20 Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything.
21 Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. 22 And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.
23 And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us. 24 Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us.
[1 John 3.11-24, New Living Translation SE]
Love One Another
11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12 We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.
19 By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. 21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.
[1 John 3.11-24, English Standard Version]
I’m dying…
Ok. I’m not really dying, at least not any faster than normal (as far as I know). Sometimes, though, it feels as if I am. The state of the world; the lying, the hurting, the crap all around us…that’s on us. It’s our fault. It’s brought death to our lives. I can feel it, and if you slow down for a second I bet you can too.
Friends, when are we going to stop? Hating each other? Lying to each other? Talking down and killing others with our words? Gossiping and starting rumors? Tearing each other down…hating, killing, destroying ourselves and others…from the inside out. Is this really what we want? Are these things, deep down, really our hearts desire?
Be honest.
God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love—like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other. His very breath and blood flow through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.
[Ephesians 4.14, 15 from the Messsage]
Love. We need to love.
I want to get this clear; I am NOT pointing my finger at you, you or you. I’m not calling anyone out. If I were, I’d be pointing 3 more fingers back at me. I’m merely putting the facts and the truth out on the table. For all to see. We are a mess and we aren’t doing much to clean up our acts. I’m the chief of sinners. I own just as much of this crap as anyone of you do. Would you take some time to pray for each other? Pray for yourselves. Pray that we could…no…that we will change.
It’s time for change. Obama was right about that. We need it. But it won’t be brought about by a new president, a new economy, a new haircut. The change, real lasting, meaningful change starts inside the hearts of the people. We need to learn to love again. Speak up in love, Act in love. Somewhere deep inside our hearts is the ability to love. Inside you and me and that guy or girl you’re always talking crap about. That smelly old homeless guy on the exit ramp every morning that we all quickly pass by, he could change everything…each of us,..could change everything if we would simply love. When will we?
I have so many struggles of my own right now, not that I’ve ever been without them, but they seem to be screaming and calling me out every chance they get. We all have crap in our lives; we all make stupid ridiculous mistakes. We live to please ourselves and climb our own individual ladders of success, however we measure it. Some of us find success in how much money we can make a year. How much junk we own. Some of us by the number of friends we have (real or on Facebook). Some of us by how “smart” we are or how many guys or girls we’ve been with. Does any of that REALLY matter? Is this what we are putting our life’s value in? Is this what we are striving for from the moment we wake up till the moment we close our eyes at night?
Stop.
Just stop.
Don’t give me that crap about it “not being that easy” or oh, maybe I’ll change next week. One more high and I’ll tone it down.
That won’t work.
I’ve tried.
You’ve tried before.
We’ve failed.
It’s time to wage a new war. It’s time to quit focusing on all the distractions, all the pleasures, all the things we think will make us happy and fight. Fight for our lives…for the lives of those around us.
It’s time to speak up, speak the truth and speak it in love. Let us not stop there though. Let’s act in love, one small action at a time. Encourage one another. Pay for someone’s drink, coffee or dinner. Give someone a good book to read. Take the time to pray with one another. Simply spend time with each other and listen. Listen.
Stop the death. Stop the killing. Let’s start truly living. Living in love.
25 So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. 26 And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.
28 If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. 29 Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.
30 And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.
[Ephesians 4.25 – 32, New Living Translation, SE]
I love you all…grace and peace. May God’s love be shown.
…wrap our hearts around whatever we treasure most…
Job stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved his head and fell to the ground to worship. He said,
“I came naked from my mother’s womb,
and I will be naked when I leave.
The Lord gave me what I had,
and the Lord has taken it away.
Praise the name of the Lord!”
In all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God.
[Job 1.20-22, NLT]
Some people struggle with tragedy and heartbreak all their lives. Others seem to sail through relatively unscathed when it comes to such traumatic interruptions as job loss, injury or illness. Still, when troubles come, we may have a hard time echoing Job’s prayer in Job 1.21. Instead, we expect God to give and then give some more. We certainly don’t expect God to take anything away–and we usually resent it when He does. Yet everything remains His. At most, we’re stewards of what He’s entrusted to us. When we hold on to people or possessions as though they belong permanently to us, we only set ourselves up for deep disappointment.
Jesus taught that we wrap our hearts around whatever we treasure most (see Matthew 6.21). But if what we treasure can be taken away or destroyed, our hearts will always be in danger. God was the center of Job’s life–his treasure. Job appreciated what he had, but his life didn’t revolve around his possessions. Instead, his heart was wrapped around his relationship with God. What lessons can you learn from Job’s experience?
I’m glad in God, far happier than you would ever guess—happy that you’re again showing such strong concern for me. Not that you ever quit praying and thinking about me. You just had no chance to show it. Actually, I don’t have a sense of needing anything personally. I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I’m just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I’ve found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.
[Philippians 4.10-13, The Message]
But I can’t forget how much this seems to fit …
About some things I know Im reading into
Because you and me come at this differently
And I’m just trying to be honest with you
You were right in front of my face
You could be the one
Go change the subject
But I can’t forget how much this seems to fit
When you feel this way
Everything sounds so cliche
But I’ll try to explain my side of this
You were right in front of my face
You could be the one that I could hold on to forever, hold on to forever
You could be the one
Maybe you are the kind that doesn’t want to say it
I should just let you be
But maybe if I spoke up that would be enough
To give my mind some peace
You could be
You could be the one that I could hold on to forever, hold on to forever
You could be the one, You could be the one
[Bethany Dillon, You Could Be The One]
