Reflections - James 4:10

James 4:10

Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up

Have you ever heard the saying..."just be yourself"  I'm sure you have probably heard it at some point or another.  I have been thinking about that phrase a lot lately in my life for a number of different reasons....and I have asked myself recently if "being myself" was a good choice....:::::TRANSPARENCY MOMENT:::::::

NOT A GOOD CHOICE

"Myself" can be nasty, negative, judgmental, rude, manipulating...blah blah blah....so yeah being myself would not be a good choice!  

When I read this verse in James a few weeks ago it rang a completely different bell for me...it was a bell that made me step back and ask for clarity on what the Lord was trying to teach me!  So, I say all of that to say I would like to share with you the best way I know how on what He so graciously spoke to my heart...

Humility is surrender and trust.  It is recognizing that we cannot do anything without HIM.  It is directly opposite of pride and pride keeps us thinking we are in control.  It is thinking of others better than ourselves.  When I humble myself before the Lord I am laying ME down and dying to self.  I am TRUSTING that my God is in control.  Humility is seeing me like God see's me.  Humility gives me PERSPECTIVE of how He would have me act, receive, and respond to the situations we face on our journey.  And humility, most importantly is living a life out of the position of a VICTOR and not a victim.  It is very easy to be the victim and the enemy wants to hold us here, but a VICTOR rises above and chooses to see what God sees and chooses to TRUST Him to lift us up!  When we choose to humble ourselves before the Lord, His word says that He will give grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5)  

I NEED HIS GRACE

So, instead of "just be yourself" I'm going to try "HUMBLE MYSELF"

My pastor friend Kim Mauney over at mauneyland.blogspot.com has also shared on this topic today!  Please visit her and read her thoughts as well!  

She has also chosen the topic for us this week.  She writes, 

To piggy-back on this week's topic for next week, we're going to talk about prayer.  I think humility and prayer go hand-in-hand since it's through prayer that we often ask for help.  I really don't have a specific verse or reading for the topic but instead I want you to spend this week reflecting on your prayer life.  How is it?  Do you even have one?  Do you pray only when you need something or do you rejoice and sing praises to the Lord in the good times, too?  What helps you remember to pray?  Do you do it daily or just when you think about it?  My hope is that through this process we can really evaluate and explore where we are at when it comes to prayer.  And if we find that we need to learn more about it to really get to where we want to be, at least we'll have a starting point.  And if you have any references that you can recommend on the topic, please feel free to share them in your post.  Can't wait to hear how God speaks to you this week!