Internet Cafe: Oh Lord, It's Hard To Be Humble

When you're perfect in every way.

I can't wait to look in the mirror.

Cuz I get better lookin' each day.

Do you, by chance, recognize the lyrics above?

I have my father to thank for indoctrinating me into the ways of old country music dudes like Charlie Pride, Mac Davis, and Ronnie Milsap. So much so that I still remember the songs they sang as they blared out from my Daddy's 8-track player in our 1976 Blue Chevy Suburban.

Humility.

Not the easiest subject to discuss or describe, but I'll give it a shot.

One of the definitions of the word humble is not proud or arrogant. Maybe you've heard Christ Followers say that to be humble doesn't mean to think less of yourself, but to think of yourself less. No matter how you define the term, I think we can agree that being humble is a far more beautiful character trait than exhibiting arrogance.

But, what do you do when you are talented in sports or writing or speaking or acting or singing? What do you do when people start mentioning your name as someone who has touched them or inspired them? What do you do when you are kind of a big deal?

Take Michael Phelps, for example.

Oh, you've not heard of him? He's only the most decorated Olympian who has ever walked the surface of our planet. Athens? Beijing? Anyone?

I was impressed with Phelps each time someone interviewed him. Impressed because not once did I sense arrogance. Confidence, yes. But arrogance? No way José. And the reason that he appeared that way to me was because of his manner.

Because of his grace.

His manner was very gracious as he stated facts about his training and the races. He did not make predictions about how much he would win. He just swam. And quite well, I might add. Not only that, but he also did not pretend that he wasn't good. You did not hear him say, "Yeah, well, I'm not that great of a swimmer but somehow I won the race."

That would have been false humility, in my opinion.

Years ago I was confronted with this in my own life. When someone would try to encourage me after I would sing a song, I would reply with, "Oh, it's not me. It's the Lord."

If that's not false humility, I don't know what is.

In Cindy's definition, to be falsely humble is to think you are all that and then say you are nothing.

I realized that I was indeed taking more praise than I deserved because that particular reply made me seem more godly than I really was. So, not only did I sing a nice song to that person, but now, I'm practically Mother Theresa in their eyes. Eventually, my reply changed to a mere thank you. And then in the quiet of my heart, I would tell God, "Thank you for using me. I owe my life to you."

And I still do that today when someone praises me or encourages me. Because I know exactly from where my gifts and talents originate.

Obviously, there is only one perfect example of humility by a human. His name is Jesus. Philippians 2 states exactly what He laid down to come to this earth to redeem mankind. We will never display the kind of humility that He did.

But what we can do is to realize who we are and how we are gifted. Once that is acknowledged, we can live in confidence because of how our Heavenly Father has wired us. He has made no mistake giving you the gifts you have. So operate in them.