Courage #7—Courageous Humility

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety upon him, because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:6–7

Here’s the trouble: hanging on to our anxiety feeds our sense of self-sufficiency and our commitment to self-exaltation. Since pride actually goes before our downfall, clasping our anxiety tightly in our hearts confirms the truth that the fastest way down is in the attempt to keep our heads above water. But the fastest way to exaltation, to “glory and honor and immortality,” is to submerge ourselves in the ocean of God’s grace. Our first act of humility is to own up to our need for merciful forgiveness from God. When we do, he will immediately exalt us to a position of fellowship, for our justification is of great concern to him. Another way to humble ourselves before God is to serve his people. Essential to the success of this effort is giving up our anxiety about whether or not our needs will be met. Fear of missing out and fear of not having enough will destroy impulses to be gracious. Peter tells us two truths about God that will move us to trust him with our worries: 1) God is mighty. He has the power to satisfy his own needs; therefore he has the ability to care for ours. 2) He is concerned about us. Since he did what was necessary in Jesus to remove the obstacle of our sin, we can trust him to provide for all our needs, especially what we need to serve others.

Exalted Lord, I am encouraged that what concerns me concerns you. Grant me the grace I need to serve with courageous humility in your name. Amen.