Showing posts with label humility. Show all posts
Showing posts with label humility. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

“Humility doesn’t mean you think less of yourself, but that you think of yourself less.”


Humility doesn’t mean you think less of yourself, but that you think of yourself less.” Facing Your Giants
Read that statement again. What does it mean to you?

I’m still reading Facing Your Giants by Max Lucado. The latest chapter I’ve finished was on the above point. We get so caught up in ourselves, our doings, in our accomplishments… that we think of ourselves as being higher and mightier than others. Do you ever think you are better than the waitress at your favorite restaurant?  Do you get annoyed with the flight attendant when she takes too long to bring your drink or forgets your blanket? Do you get irate when the cashier makes a mistake on your order? I know I have. I’m in a hurry. Maybe I know how to do their job more efficiently than they do. Maybe I just ran out of patience. And let’s face it, I’m the client. You serve me. My needs come as a priority. Don’t they?
What other ways do I feel superior? Maybe when faced with someone who truly is stupid? Let’s clarify something before I move on from that though… Ignorance is the absence of information. Stupidity is the presence of knowledge but the refusal to use it. Know anyone like that? So let’s say I am forced to interact with them. What’s the attitude I find myself taking? You got it. I’m better than they are. I can do that better than they can.

But what should I be doing? Remembering that I am no better than anyone else would be a great start. That some people are “special” and should be treated as such. I’m not any more than anyone else in this world. I am me. I’ll admit, I am talented. I am intelligent. I won’t boast about it, though. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve argued with friends that I’m nothing special. Its this mindset that I need to stay in. I need to stay humble.
Lucado goes on to say that we should come down to the lower levels with our pride. When we rise too high, we can't hear or see others. We miss what is truly going on because we are too caught up in ourselves. "You'll be amazed what you hear and who you see. And you'll breathe a whole lot easier." You won't be trying to always impress others. You can just be you.

I don't think of myself as being less. I just need to think of myself less.

 
hu·mil·i·ty
[(h)yo͞oˈmilədē]
 

NOUN

  1. a modest or low view of one's own importance; humbleness.