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How Low Can You Go from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo.

(James 4:10 NKJV)  Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

One Sunday morning, several years ago, I was working at the coffee counter at our local church when the Lord gave me a word for a member of the praise team. It was just a single sentence that dropped into my spirit when I saw him come in that morning. So while he was getting coffee, I gave him the message. It went like this:

"I am about to raise you up. The lower that you allow yourself to go, the higher that I will take you."

It was a simple word. Yet, as with most things from the Lord, it carried great meaning, and it came before a crossroad in his life. Being on stage in front of the congregation does not cultivate humility but often brings pride. The Lord was encouraging humility in his next decision.

A week later, the pastor called a meeting of the praise team and gave them some improvement tips from what he observed as a member of the audience. I was there, and it was all good advice that I have heard in similar meetings over the years: "Smile more. Don't wear hats, shorts, or flip-flops on stage. Turn your phone off. Work to improve your skills. Reduce the cables and clutter. Clean up your area."

Most of the praise team nodded and agreed. Yet, this one brother that I had previously given the word became greatly offended at him. I thought he was going to begin foaming at the mouth. After 15 years of playing with the praise team, he left church that evening, de-friended all of us, publicly told the pastor off on Facebook, and then named himself an apostle.

What a missed opportunity. The Lord would have used him in a greater way if he could have put aside his pride.

(Proverbs 16:18 NKJV)  Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.

Humility includes a dependence on God, while pride is an attitude of independence from Him. Before we move on, let's examine some differences between humility and pride:

Biblical humility: means a modest or low view of your own importance. Putting others equal or above yourself. Being submissive to and depending on God. It conveys modesty, humbleness, meekness, unassertiveness, lack of vanity, submissiveness. It deflates your ego.

Biblical pride: is an overly inflated sense of one's own worth or personal status. It typically makes one feel a sense of superiority over others and will cause you to look down on them. At the top, it brings a desire for independence from God or equality with Him. It inflates your ego.

The Lord doesn't humble you. He will provide an opportunity for you to choose the humble path or the path of pride. You'll have to make a decision on how to respond. If you humble yourself, the Lord will raise you up. Also, don't pray for the Lord to make you humble, for if someone else humbles you, it is called humiliation. Only you can humble yourself.

Each time the Lord has promoted me, a humbling season preceded it. Before I became a Pastor, we went to a church workday event, and He provided me an opportunity. One of the only jobs left was cleaning all of the restrooms. Everyone had passed on that one, and people were painting, working on the computers, straightening chairs, and the like.

I could feel the Holy Spirit giving me a choice. Would I puff up in pride and leave, or humble myself and become the missing servant? It would have been easy to walk away. I saw amateurs working on the computers, while I had twenty years of experience in the business. Others struggled to paint, though I had been a painting contractor for years, and I wanted to teach them how to hold the brush.

I pushed all the prideful "They don't know who I am" thoughts away, rolled up my sleeves, put my audio Bible on in my headphones, and embraced it with a smile. I pretended that I was working directly for Jesus Christ, as if He had told me to do this. I scrubbed the floors, walls, doors, sinks, toilet bowls, and urinals until they shined and smelled like lemons.

Then I went on to the next bathroom. I did all of the restrooms upstairs, downstairs, and in the lobby. I found toilets that I didn't even know the church had. In the end, I did such a good job that the church secretary sent us a letter expressing her surprise at our "humility." She actually mentioned it in the letter. Then a short while later, the Lord pushed me into full-time ministry.

What I am telling you is the truth. A chance to be humble precedes your promotion. It works. I'm not saying it will be fun, but the results of true humility are great. If you are full of pride, God will not use you. Be willing to become the servant of all:

(Matthew 23:11–12 NKJV)  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Also, there is a certain ruthlessness to God. When He is after something in your life, He is like a dentist going after a bad tooth. We can beg Him to stop and say don't touch it, but He will keep going until He gets it all out, and then things will get better.

When the Lord gives me a servant's task to do, then I work as if I am answering directly to Him. I make it into a game and act like He is right there with me. It is the way we are instructed to:

(Colossians 3:23–24 NKJV)  And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

(1 Peter 5:5–7 NKJV)  ...and be clothed with humility, for "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble." Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

You can pray this with me if you like:

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I pray that You let me see through Your eyes and spot the servant's job clearly when it appears. Speak to me, Lord, for I am listening. Help me serve others with a smile and imitate Jesus in action, not just in words. Open my eyes to see the areas of my pride in my life and give me the grace to deal with it. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!

Here are some more scriptures for those who want to look deeper:

• (Numbers 12:3 NKJV)  (Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.)
• Psalm 18:27 (NKJV) "For You will save the humble people, but will bring down haughty looks."
• Psalm 25:9 (NKJV) "The humble He guides in justice, and the humble He teaches His way."
• Psalm 138:6 (NKJV) "Though the LORD is on high, yet He regards the lowly; But the proud He knows from afar."
• Psalm 147:6 (NKJV) "The LORD lifts up the humble; He casts the wicked down to the ground."
• Proverbs 3:34 (NKJV) "Surely He scorns the scornful, but gives grace to the humble."
• Proverbs 22:4 (NKJV) "By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches and honor and life."
• Proverbs 16:18 (NKJV) "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall."
• James 4:6 (NKJV) "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble."

Notes:

• - Pride goes before destruction.
• - Humility goes before exaltation.
• - God resists the proud, but He gives grace to the humble.
• - Dwight Moody said: "If humility ever speaks of itself, it is already gone."
• - Fasting is a great biblical way of humbling yourself.