humility – Page 4 – Be Still…

Holy Week 2020 – Wednesday

What must Jesus have been feeling? He knew what was coming. It wasn’t going to be pretty, but it was going to be the most beautiful thing he could ever do for those he loved. For us. The time was drawing near. Jesus was human, so he had to be fearful. You know that sick feeling you get when you dread something–that’s what I imagine Jesus was feeling that night. Yet, his love for his friends was stronger.

Jesus’ relationship was secure. God was his Father and he would soon be returning to him. There was no doubt about that. Knowing this truth must have also led to complete and total freedom! Jesus knew who had his back. But he would be leaving his friends behind. Imagine you knew you were going to die, what would you want to tell your friends? Jesus had another lesson left to teach.

Proverbs 27:1-16 – No Bragging Allowed

Read Proverbs 27:1-16

The nuggets of wisdom continue. I’m sure if I read this same passage a week from now a different proverb would speak to me. But for this reflection let’s look at verse 2. It says, “Let someone else praise you, not your own mouth—a stranger, not your own lips.” I have always struggled with tooting my own horn. It’s also hard for me to accept praise from others. What about you?

Do you have a hard time accepting compliments or praise? We all know people who don’t seem to have any trouble telling others how awesome they are. In fact, you may even be picturing a few of them this very moment. It’s not attractive is it? When we see others applauding their own success it can be intimidating, too. It’s much more acceptable when another person is praising them for their good deeds.

Proverbs 15:21-33 – Humble Yourself

Read Proverbs 15:21-33

Would you agree that most people would rather take the shorter route to their destination? Or perhaps the fastest route would be better? To say the least, we are a destination focused society. Think of these examples. On vacation, you are heading somewhere. When reading a book, your destination is the ending of the story. When in school, you are working toward a degree or certification. Whatever the destination is, there is a journey to get there.

What if the journey is more important than the destination? Are we spending too much time focused on outcome that we miss the beauty of the steps to get there? Think of all the people who want to be famous and receive recognition and honor. That is the destination they seek. Verse 33 would say, “Fear of the Lord teaches wisdom; humility precedes honor.” We must humble ourselves first. If our “destination” is fame and glory, we need to first step back, humble ourselves, and prepare our hearts for the honor. We need not discount the beautiful journey we will take to get there and be more focused on serving and blessing others.

Matthew 21:1-11 – Triumphant Entry

Read Matthew 21:1-11

When you think of Palm Sunday, what is the first memory that comes to your mind? Please share in the comments. I’m expecting that waving palm fronds and processionals come to mind. We did a treasure hunt for the kids at our last church with all the elements of the Passion. The kids found eggs with trinkets to help them tell the Easter story. It was powerful for me. I hope it created a memorable experience for the kids, too.

Now as I write this reflection, it’s the first part of October. Not the usual time for thinking about this story. Putting those limiting thoughts aside, I read the passage again with fresh eyes. What I see today is a beautiful display of prophecy fulfilled. Matthew’s entire gospel is rich with examples of prophecies that have been completed.

Matthew 19:16-30 – Good Life

Read Matthew 19:16-30

We are all looking for shortcuts, aren’t we? We want a diet pill to lose weight, a get rich quick scheme to make money, a drive up window to get our food faster–you get the idea. So it makes sense that this rich young man wanted to know what one “good” thing he had to do to have eternal life. He wanted to live forever and knew that was something his money couldn’t buy.

I loved Jesus’ response. Good? There is only One who is “good.” Our good Heavenly Father. Chris Tomlin has a great song called “Good Good Father” and you can listen HERE.