Humble Yourself...How?

In his distress he sought the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.
-- II Chronicles 33:12
Manasseh was one evil dude. Although a leader in Israel, he threw infants on the sacrificial grill to appease pagan gods. After he was captured by the Assyrians, bound in shackles, and led away by a hook in his nose to Babylon, "he humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers."

We wouldn't want Manasseh's experience, but we do want to be humble. And so, we uproot all the "pagan gods" in our life: Petty resentments and an overstuffed ego. Yet when we drive ourselves to our knees for sin's sake, or our sake, or the sake of our marriages or churches, friendships or family, we fail. If we're looking for humility, we don't look at ourselves or how greatly we miss the mark, we gaze at God. We seek his favor. We humble ourselves before the Lord.

To humble yourself before the Lord is to meditate, muse, brood, and consider the Lord and his greatness. An old Puritan in The Valley of Vision wrote, "Let me never forget that the heinousness of sin lies not so much in the nature of the sin committed, as in the greatness of the person sinned against."

By the way, Manasseh was not only forgiven, but reinstated as king of Israel. What an incredible example of the enormous extent to which God will go to forgive. But remember that Manasseh humbled himself greatly.

Ponder the greatness of God today. You'll find yourself becoming slow to speak, quick to listen, thanking bus-boys at restaurants, praying more fervently, pinch-hitting for the Toddler Praise lady who usually does diaper duty, and sacrificing an extra hour of sleep in the morning for a more earnest quiet time.

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Keep me from growing self sufficient today, Lord. Help me not to focus on my pride, but on you; not so much on my sin, as the greatness of you whom I have sinned against. Please give me the spirit of humility.

Valley of Vision, pg. 79



Blessings,

Joni and Friends