Approach Your Opinions with Humility
Imagine a world with more humility.
The conversations on social media would assume the best in others, offer generosity, and listen with curiosity. We would feel less pressure to prove our “rightness.” Gentle responses could help quell ongoing bickering.
I shared on Psalm 143 this past Sunday. The writer of the Psalm struck me as someone who grasped humility. As you read through this powerful prayer, you encounter a healthy view of God, humanity, and crisis. A nuance often missed in our modern lives today.
C.S. Lewis, in Mere Christianity, describes the process of acquiring humility:
If anyone would like to acquire humility, I can, I think, tell him the first step. The first step is to realise that one is proud. And a bigger step, too, At least, nothing whatever can be done before it. If you think you are not conceited, it means you are very conceited indeed
Mere Christianity (Pg. 128)
Acquiring humility presents two miscalculations. First, people can falsely see humility as insecurity, never stepping up with God-given confidence. Secondly, people can label themselves humble, but as Lewis states, they deeply hold their conceitedness.
As we begin this week, what would it look like to approach your opinions with humility? I wonder if we would fight less with people we disagree. I wonder if we could hold in tension grace and truth as Jesus would. I wonder if we could reflect on our opinions with more open-handedness.
Psalm 143 provides three ways we can approach our opinions with humility:
Embrace your need for mercy (Psalm 143:1)
The Psalmist begins by asking God, “…listen to my cry for mercy.” Mercy has been described as not getting what you deserve. Scholars and commentators look at the Hebrew, which envisions God giving favor. Ultimately, a cry for mercy has less to do with us and more to do with God. We don’t bring our resume begging God for mercy. On the contrary, embracing our need for mercy begins with the character of God’s love for us.
Admit your brokenness (Psalm 143:2)
The Psalmist then goes on to pray, “…for no one living is righteous before you.” Consider how you view yourself and others. To realize our brokenness invites our need for God. Then the grace we receive from God becomes the grace we give to others. The Psalmist can hold the complexity of human brokenness with the love of God. We encounter remarkable freedom in humility in seeing our need for God.
Seek guidance beyond yourself (Psalm 143:8–10)
The Psalmist then asks God, “…Show me the way I should go, I entrust you with my life.” Psalm 143 refreshingly reminds us that only God has a complete view of the world. As humans, we need His guidance to dispel our blind spots and knee-jerk reactions. Seeking guidance slows us down from over-valuing our opinions. It builds compassion, empathy, and genuine curiosity.
Take a moment to read Psalm 143 as a prayer. Ask God to help you engage your perspectives and opinions with humility. Perhaps, our most significant need in this season is to let go of our pride to experience the good news of the gospel.
You can watch yesterday’s message by clicking the link below.
Photo by Diana Simumpande on Unsplash
Originally published at https://peterenglert.com on July 6, 2020.
