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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…

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]

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.

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]

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.

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]

Deuteronomy 31.1-8, NLT 

One of the hallmarks of American culture in the 20th century was its fascination with the superhero. From comic-book sales to blockbuster movies to the graphic novel genre, entire industries have played into the attraction we have to individuals who are somehow possessed of powers not enjoyed by mere mortals. Superman, Spiderman, Batman, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and other fictional characters capture our collective imagination as they battle super-villians their creators dream up to fight them. The urge of a boy to wear his underpants on the outside of his pajamas and tear around the house fighting phantom bad guys is an inherited character trait passed down proudly from father to son.

So what is it about a superhero that’s so appealing? Bravery. Power. Strength. Ingenuity. The ability to fly. The fact that they usually get the girl. The fact that they can seemingly get out of any jam they find themselves in. Who wouldn’t want that kind of existence?

Thinking of that context, reread today’s passage. Joshua is, in effect, getting his superhero’s license from Moses. Now, it’s unlikely that this involved a cape and a mask, but Moses here tells Joshua that, with God’s power behind him, he will be able to deal with adversity and conquer his foes.

Moses tells the people that their new leader, Joshua, will take them forward into Canaan. Their old leader, Moses, encourages Joshua in front of the people, “Be strong and courageous…The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you…Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” With that reinforcement as a backdrop, Joshua moved forward. Fear couldn’t hold him back. He believed God.

If you knew that you couldn’t fail, what would you do differently? Pursue a promotion at work? Further your education? Ask someone to marry you? Risk repairing a broken relationship?

The fact is that, when God goes before you, you can’t fail. If you’re living within God’s will you don’t need to be afraid. You may endure a few shots along the way, but with the world’s only real Superpower behind you, you can’t ultimately fail. Take the risk. Live with passion. Listen to his assurance: “Be strong and courageous…Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

go back and read Deuteronomy 30.11-14. what does this passage
say about your ability to obey God and the benefits of doing so?

how has fear kept you from reaching your dreams?

in what areas of your life do you need more courage?

“Trust God, and be not afraid, or else you will plague yourself.”
–Charles Haddon Spurgeon

great God greater than us all / forgive us we have made You small / God open our eyes to see / great God greater than us all / let Your people stand in awe / God we will rise up and say great God!
[Daniel Doss Band, Great God]

i’ve caught myself way too many times lately making more of me…and less of God…i lean harder on MY knowledge, on MY skills, on MY desires…striving for what I want…and in the process i find that i’m ignoring what God is doing in and around me and i end up putting Him back in the cool little box i’ve made for Him…no wonder i’ve been so “blah” lately…no wonder i haven’t been able to look up and see the glory of it all and just be struck by awe…

it really frustrates me that i keep telling myself things like, “He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.” [john 3.30, nlt], and reading books like Louie Giglio’s i am not but i know I AM, and C.J. Mahaney’s Humility, and i still miss the point…everyday i miss it. ugh! ha…it’s just so frustrating…i want my life to matter…to mean something…to be bigger than me!

my friend Patrick just got back from Passion where Louie Giglio and many others just straight up brought the truth…you can read in Patrick’s blog where he talks about Louie, saying:

“the 1st night (Friday) Louie talked about each of us leveraging our lives for “the most important thing of everything” = the Name & Fame of Jesus (Revelation 5). We each get a little match that burns (life) for a bunch of years & then it dwindles down & goes out. But, I wanna throw my little match in with the eternal, glorious flame of Jesus & make that flame as bright & famous as I can. Because once my match (life) has burned out, that’s the end. Just a simple talk, but a great reminder that living my life for Jesus’ fame is all that matters.”

what would Christianity look like if we considered ourselves less and less and Christ greater and greater in our lives? what would it look like if we would mean it when we say, “i know i am not, but i know I AM”? what would it look like if we all took our little matches and threw them into Christ’s glorious flame?

God, forgive us for making you so small…for glorifying ourselves when all glory and honor and majesty should be yours…all yours and only yours…let us live our lives in continual awe of you…let us rise up and say great God!

My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.

My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!

This is how we know we’re living steadily and deeply in him, and he in us: He’s given us life from his life, from his very own Spirit. Also, we’ve seen for ourselves and continue to state openly that the Father sent his Son as Savior of the world. Everyone who confesses that Jesus is God’s Son participates continuously in an intimate relationship with God. We know it so well, we’ve embraced it heart and soul, this love that comes from God.

God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we’re free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ’s. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.

We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first.

If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both.

[1 john 4.7-21, the message]

An airplane is meant to fly, a car is built to be driven, and clothes are designed to be worn. You would have very little use for a plane that would not fly, a car that would not move, or clothes that can no longer be worn.

Why? Because their purpose is not being realized. It’s a great frustration to have things that are no longer useful. God must feel that way about us sometimes.

You were designed to know Him, not simply to have a comfortable life. You were not created just to get married, have children and a successful career, then grow old and enjoy retirement. These are some of life’s benefits, its side dishes, not its purpose.

The tragedy today is that we have taken life’s benefits and tried to make them our purpose. We’re trying to make the side dishes the main course. The result is that we often find the benefits very unsatisfactory. No wonder.

So if the purpose of life is not marriage, success, happiness, or any of that, what is it? What were we created for? Answer: we were created to know and worship God with an all-consuming passion. That’s it. That’s why Paul tells us to do everything to God’s glory.

Bringing glory to something means to put it on the mantel where it can be admired. A woman seeks glory when she decorates her home in such a way that guests say, “Wow, where did you get that?” She puts a special treasure on display so that when people see it, they are in awe.

That’s what we’re supposed to do for God. We’re supposed to display Him in such a way that people are awed by Him. Glorifying God means to make Him look good, to place Him on display so that when others see our lives, they are in awe of our God.

Even in the everyday stuff, your goal should be to make God look good. But I can tell you, it takes real passion to live like that. To anyone who is trying to know and serve God halfheartedly without passion, I think Paul would say, “Why bother?” If you’re going to seek God, go for it like you mean it!

–Tony Evans

have you been tempted to seek your joy in the “benefits of life”? how have they proved unfulfilling?

why is it important to glorify God?

how can you glorify God in practical ways in your everyday life?

God doesn’t erase the consequences of our bad decisions, whether they involve a damaged reputation, a ruined friendship, a marital separation (divorce), an addiction, a physical ailment, legal action, bankruptcy or just a whole lot of self-loathing. But He doesn’t abandon us either.

No matter what mistakes you’ve made in your life, God still wants to be in relationship with you. He still wants to use you in His kingdom work. In fact, if you let Him, He’ll use you in powerful ways you never thought possible.

if you could undo three decisions in your life, what would they be? why?

what consequences have you experienced as a result of bad decisions?

do you still experience guilt about past mistakes? read 1 john 1.9. and, when you pray, offer yourself again to be used by God today.

But if we confess our sins, he will forgive our sins, because we can trust God to do what is right. He will cleanse us from all the wrongs we have done.
[1 john 1.9, ncv]