Humility

Early this morning, I heard a young musician on tv give the clearest definition of humility I've ever heard. Here's how he framed it. Humility is not thinking less of yourself...it's thinking about yourself...less. That really caused me to pause and re-think a few things. The apostle Paul teaches that we should have the same attitude as that of Jesus Christ. He then defines that attitude. Christ in very nature is God, yet He didn't cling tightly to it rather He made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant. I always embraced this as Christ purging Himself of His glory and reducing His status to nothing. Although there is truth to that...the bigger story is that Christ didn't think less of Himself, He simply put the concerns of virtually everyone before His own. He humbled Himself to the extent He laid down even His existence and became obedient to death. For you and for me. I tend to wade in a self-effacing humility that has often been emotionally destructive. There's so much more life involved by intentionally loving your neighbor as yourself and putting their needs first.