Day 26 - March 19

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ,

if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness

and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. Philippians 2:1-4

Humility can be one of the hardest calls a Christian has to answer. In our society, those who are proud, confident, and ambitious are recognized and move up in this life. As Christians, we are called to live a life different from the life which society values. Paul calls us to follow Christ’s example here in chapter two. We should not think of ourselves as better than other people for the one who came into this world as fully divine did not think of himself as better or great, although he had every right to. Rather, he humbled himself to become human. Now, humility does not mean that you passively travel through this life never giving your opinion, never being heard or counted. Paul says that, “in humility value others above yourselves, looking not to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” I love the phrase that defines humility this way; ‘Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.’ Humility does not go hand in hand with a low self-esteem, but rather it calls us to think first of the other and what they might need, think, want, or dream, so that we may serve the other like Christ has served us.