Day 23 - Humility

"If my people, who are called by my name, 

will humble themselves 

and pray and seek my face 

and turn from their wicked ways, 

then I will hear from heaven, 

and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 

(2 Chronicles 7:14)

The first virtue we turn our attention to is humility. Humility is the foundation of all virtue, prayer, and holiness. To be humble is to know God's love and to live as His child. If we want to come to know God and the beauty that He gave us, then we must "humbly cleanse our hearts" (Catechism of the Catholic Church 2779). When we come before God with humble hearts, He can then whisper to us the secrets about who we really are. We have to admit that we don't know everything. We have to recognize that we are the creature and God is the Creator. We should not be prideful about who we have made ourselves to be. All goodness and all holiness come from the Lord. Our gifts and talents are given to us by Him, to reveal His love to the world. Mother Teresa said, "I am a pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world."  The greatness that we have to share is a mere reflection of His ultimate greatness. 

To be humble is not something our culture sells today. We are not told to become little, but to become big, great, successful and rich. The Christian sees success and richness in a different light, we live for more than this world and we long to be little and make God's greatness known. We long for the riches of eternal life and the success of the soul, which brings true and lasting fulfillment in this life. Contrary to what we are told, to seek humility is not to lay down and be trampled upon or to lose our dignity. To be humble is to recognize who we are before God and to be His children. We are chosen to be daughters of God, this is the greatest of all identities. We must become little, like a child. In our littleness, we pray, trust, and obey our Father. A good parent doesn't make rules and plans for their children for their enslavement or demise. Our heavenly Father, who is all good, leads the humble child down pathways of freedom and life. 

During the sermon on the mount, Jesus spoke of humility as being "poor in spirit." To be poor in spirit is to choose littleness for the sake of something greater. To deny my own sensual desires, to need God more than I need the things of this world.  This kind of littleness fuels a fire for true love. We are called to humble service. "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves" (Philippians 2:3). The reward of the humble life will be the riches of heaven, "blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs" (Matthew 5:3).  Through humility we live as God's children on earth and inherit His kingdom in heaven. 

Pope Benedict XVI said,

 "It seems to me that for you to grasp the important message of God on humility has never been more important than now... The message is this: don't follow the way of pride, but of humility... It's not about defeat, but it's the result of love's victory over selfishness, and of grace over sin. Following Christ and imitating Mary, we must have the courage of humility; we must entrust ourselves with humility to the Lord, because only then can we become docile instruments in his hands, and have the permission to do great things." 

(Loreto humily and Angelus, Rome, Italy, Sep. 2, 2007)

We are daughters of God, let's allow that to transform us, to be our identity, and to give us life. "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up" (James 4:10). When we humble ourselves to live as His beautiful daughters, our Father will use use to be a blessing to the world, to reveal His greatness. 

Today's Challenge: 

Find a prominent place (on your mirror, refrigerator, etc.) to begin posting a reminder for each virtue we focus on. Begin by writting "Humility: to live as God's little daughter."  Each time you see this reminder, ask God to help you become humble. 

Today's Prayer: 

Click Here to pray the Litany of Humility.