Learning To Be Humble

Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you. James 4:10

I recently watched a video series on the Joyful mysteries of the rosary, which are reflections on the life of Jesus from His conception to when he was found in the temple. In one of the videos, the speaker talked about humility and that we often misunderstand humility. He said we tend to think that to be humble, we need to think less of ourselves. However, this is not correct. The speaker explained, “Humility is thinking about yourself less; not thinking less of yourself.”

I have been pondering this a great deal since I heard his explanation. It has opened my eyes and more importantly, my heart to understand Jesus and Mary more.  

In the gospels, we see Jesus’ teaching and serving others with humility throughout his ministry while He was here on earth. He served others first. He never took the glory for His wisdom or miracles but instead gave all the glory to God, His Father. We never see Him demeaning Himself or putting Himself down. Instead, He pointed everyone to the Father and showed all what loving God and others was supposed to look like. Even in His hour of death, He was humble. He prayed for forgiveness for all who persecuted Him and played a part in His crucifixion and death. He did not think of Himself first but of you, me, and everyone else first.

For the longest time, I understood humility was to think less of myself. But that is not correct and has never felt right. God created me and what God creates is always good and always enough.  

I am learning each day to stop when I want to focus on myself and what I want. As I recognize these thoughts and tendencies, I say to myself, “No. Be humble. Think of yourself less and more of the other person first.” This change in my perspective has opened my heart and allowed me to love others more.   

The other day as I was walking into church. Normally I focus on myself and just give a short greeting or hello to those standing outside of the church. However, this time, as I walked up the steps, I stopped myself and looked at those standing around. I intentionally greeted them warmly, asked about their families, and focused on them. This change may have been small, but it was very powerful. It was one way for me to humble myself and love those around me. Additionally, this perspective has taught me that humility is attainable. I maintain my self-worth as a daughter of God and at the same time, focus on those God has put in my path.

Let us begin our day thanking Jesus for his perfect example of humility. Let us remember to think of ourselves less and to never think less of ourselves. Let us be humble and focus on those that God puts in our path today.