There is a strange idea many of us carry about humility. We think being humble means playing ourselves down. We brush off a compliment. We hide what we are good at. We tell ourselves that other people matter more, while quietly treating ourselves as though we hardly matter at all.
But that is not humility.
Humility is not hating yourself. It is knowing who you are so securely that you no longer need to make everything about you.
Hello. I’m Rob and welcome to the Battle Drill Daily Devotional. We’re on Day 4 of our series on how to measure our lives in good ways. Yesterday, we discovered that the small things we do really do matter to God and to those around us.
Today, we’re focused on what humility really means. Jesus shows us this beautifully in John 13.
Just before he washes his disciples’ feet, we read, “Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God. So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin.”
Notice the order.
Jesus knew who he was. Then he served.
He did not kneel because he thought he was worthless. He knelt because he knew his worth. His identity was secure in the Father, so he had nothing to prove and nothing to protect.
That changes how we think about humility.
Henri Nouwen wrote often about our need to know that we are God’s beloved. He saw how easily we build our identity on success, praise, usefulness, or what other people think of us. But when we know we are loved before we achieve anything, we become freer. We can stop fighting for attention. We can stop comparing ourselves. We can use our gifts without needing applause.
Perhaps you have been taught that noticing your strengths is pride. So you make yourself smaller. You keep quiet when you could help. You refuse a kind word because accepting it feels uncomfortable.
But what if healthy humility sounds different?
Perhaps it says, “Yes, God has given me this gift, and I am grateful. How can I use it for someone else?”
That is very different from showing off.
Pride says, “Look at me.”
False humility says, “There is nothing worth seeing.”
True humility says, “Whatever is good in me is a gift, so let me put it to work in love.”
Think about one strength you often dismiss. Maybe you listen well. Perhaps you organise things. You may be patient with children, good with numbers, able to cook, quick to notice someone sitting alone, or calm when everyone else is anxious.
Do not pretend that gift is not there.
Thank God for it.
Then use it.
You do not need to announce what you are doing. You do not need to wait until you feel spiritual. Simply notice where your God-given strength meets another person’s need. That meeting place can become holy ground.
At home, your strength might help someone who is tired. At work or college, it might steady a colleague who is struggling. In your corps or church, it might mean serving without needing your name mentioned. In your neighbourhood, it might open a door for someone who needs practical help.
Jesus did not forget who he was when he picked up the towel.
He remembered.
And because he remembered, he could kneel.
That may be the invitation for you today. Stop confusing humility with making yourself disappear. God does not need a smaller version of you. He wants the real you, secure enough in his love to use what he has given you for the good of others.
So receive the compliment. Thank God for the skill. Accept that you have something to offer.
Then pick up the towel.
My question today is: What strength in yourself have you sometimes found difficult to accept? Why not answer in the comments. Not to sound prideful, but to thank God for the gift he has given you.
Let us pray.
Father, thank you that my worth does not depend on being noticed, praised, or impressive. Help me to see myself as you see me. Keep me from pride, but also keep me from false humility. Show me the gifts you have placed in my life, and give me the freedom to use them with love. Make me secure enough to serve, generous enough to share, and humble enough to point beyond myself to you.
Amen.
Today, name one strength God has given you. Then find one quiet way to use it for someone else.
And join me again tomorrow for day five of our series - Real Strength Doesn’t Need to Cling. We’ll be looking at how Jesus shows us that position and privilege are safest in the hands of people who do not need to cling to them.
See you then.