I need a lesson {or two} on humility. It's hard to even admit that.
I am reminded that I need to put into practice 1 Peter 5:5, "...All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble'." I want His measure of grace to be poured out on me, on my life, and I want it to be visible to others around me.
As I was cleaning my house, the Lord was dealing with me; my heart. As I was scrubbing those toilets till they sparkled I could feel Him gently calling me to clothe myself in humility.
I want to be an open book. I want to be honest enough to share a weakness of mine. We all have them, don't we? So it probably won't surprise you when I tell you I have some. Many. One in particular I need to work on is not being judgemental, but rather being humble.
I guess one would argue that the opposite of humble is prideful. Correct? Well, for me when I'm not being humble I am being judgemental. I am seeing myself greater than whomever I am judging. Perhaps it's something as little as, "now why couldn't so and so just keep their house clean?" Or maybe a much larger one, "why on earth would they make that decision. That was stupid. Don't they see the consequences? Where's their head at?".
These are clearly judgements. And, unless I too want to be judged then I need to cut it out of my life. I need to catch myself when the thought comes, or even worse, when I speak it out loud to another person.
I'm not perfect. No one is. That's the beauty of it. Not one of us is better than the other. We are all human. We are equal. We all sin. I'm just thankful that there's One who is greater, who can wash me of my impurities and still call me His own.
I'm thankful that He loves me enough to gently prod me and prune me, even if it's while I'm cleaning our toilets. Isn't that just like Him? Dealing with my heart, shedding light on an area that needs His grace in great measure, when I least expected it? I think we've all come to expect to receive something from Him while we're in the Word or praying, but what a great reminder that He's always there. He is always speaking. We just need to be listening. I've found that when my mind is on auto pilot {read: cleaning house} I have less on my mind. My heart and mind are open to receive.
I'm grateful that He found me right where I was. That he cleaned house in my heart and that I'm able to share with you today that He is greater. His grace is greater than our failures, our past, our weakness, and our mistakes. He makes us new.
I'm forever grateful to Him.