Humility

Humble thyself in the sight of the Lord
Humble thyself in the sight of the Lord
And he shall lift you up
Higher and higher
And he shall lift you up

hum·ble (hŭm'bəl) –adjective
1. not proud or arrogant; modest
2. having a feeling of insignificance, inferiority, subservience, etc.
3. low in rank, importance, status, quality, etc.; lowly
4. courteously respectful
5. low in height, level, etc.; small in size
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/humble

We talked last week in church about why Jesus had to be born in Bethlehem. Sure the prophets had foretold it that way, but why Bethlehem? Why not Jerusalem, or some beautiful city in Montana? The Bible often mentions Bethlehem as a place of sorrow... Rachel died and was buried there, Ruth and Naomi returned to Bethlehem after their husbands died, Micah calls Bethlehem "small among the clans of Judah".

It was the ultimate act of humility. Philippians 2, one of my favorite passages, says that we should
"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!"
(emphasis mine)

It goes along with what I wrote in my last post. I desire recognition, but I need to be humble. I need to always put others ahead of myself, not just in what I do but also what I think. My attitude should be the same as that of Jesus. After all, he left the glory and splendor of heaven to be born in a stable in the tiny town of Bethlehem...