A peculiar yet powerful gift

“God did . . . give us a peculiar yet powerful gift.  The gift of humility.  A gift that has for too long been left unopened, discarded, and lost as we’ve tried to gain the benefits of the gift . . . without learning how to live Christ’s humble life today.”- Joel Muddamalle

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.”- James 4:10 (NIV)

Joel Muddamalle concludes Chapter 6 of The Hidden Peace as he stresses that, viewed through the lens of Christ, we strive to cherish — not despise — suffering, frailty, weakness, insecurity, instability, feeling overwhelmed, and coming to the end of ourselves.  Because these very things connect us to Christ.  And to the very power we so desperately desire.

Above all, Joel notes, we feel God’s peace when this connection takes place.  Certainly, the author admits, this process can feel overwhelming and honestly unfair.  But God gives us a peculiar yet powerful gift of humility to accomplish this.

When Joel was about twelve or thirteen, a group of political radicals in India kidnapped his grandfather.  His captors told him he must deny Jesus and stop talking about Him.  Or they would kill him.  But Joel’s grandfather refused and began to sing a worship song, anticipating the end.

However, all of a sudden, the captors screamed in terror and ran down the mountain.  Later, one captor returned and led the blindfolded grandfather down the mountain.  Most significantly, that captor, back in his childhood, was a former student of his captive.

In conclusion, Joel explains what helps us when faced with such a massive moment.  He writes:

“I think our response to massive moments like this is the culmination of thousands of small moments — whenever we have the opportunity to practice humility.  And so, every day, we want to get our hearts positioned for this kind of response to vulnerability, inability, and suffering. . . .  So we are in the habit of bringing our neediness to the only one who can provide for all our needs.”

Today’s question: How do you see humility as a peculiar yet powerful gift?  Please share.

Tomorrow’s blog: “The power of humility: clarity”