Back in the ’80s, Mac Davis wrote a song called, “Lord, It’s Hard to Be Humble.” The words were funny because the lyrics suggested that the singer was perfect in every way. Humility is pretty much a thing of the past in the 21st Century. Especially when an election is only a few weeks away. Those running for office sing their own praises as to why they should be elected and truthfully, very few are listening to their commercials. I haven’t received so much mail in a long time. It always ends up in the recycle bin. Somewhere along the line, humility has taken a back seat. We’re told to be proud of our accomplishments. We should hand out “participation awards,” like candy at a parade. We should pat ourselves on the backs for just being here.

The ideas of working hard to achieve goals, ethics, honesty and humility have been flooded over with the hashtag that we deserve to be honored. We expect to get bonuses even if we don’t deserve them. We are the best we can be, so we should be rewarded – right? I wonder how Jesus would react to our self-esteem issues. He was the humblest of mankind. Born in poverty – sheltered in a manger – lived a life of perfection, but was humiliated and brought to a cross to be crucified. He always thought of others first. He gave up a throne in heaven to take our sin upon Himself so that we could inherit His kingdom. He loved us so much that He died for us. What if He didn’t exhibit humility? What if He came as a fearful judge to expose our sins to everyone? He’s the Son of God after all. What if He used His powers for HIs own benefit? We have an amazing God. He loves us unconditionally, even when we don’t return the favor. He wants everyone to be in heaven with Him. Since we’re told to be like Him in our daily walk, humility should be first on our list of attitude adjustments.

Still, Satan has a toolbox full of things to take our eyes off of Jesus. One of them is pride. He tempts us into thinking we are deserving of the “good life” because of our good deeds. He uses our human nature to make us doubt that God is in control. We know that the devil is out to capture our souls, but he can’t. We have the armor of God all around us. Jesus conquered Satan when he overcame death and so will we. If we feel the need to be bold and proud of our existence, we can spread the good news by sharing it with those who need to know God and His perfect love. He is worthy of our praise.

“Humility is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of yourself less.” C.S. Lewis