No man or woman of the humblest sort can really be strong, gentle and good, without the world being better for it, without somebody being helped and comforted by the very existence of that goodness.- Phillips Brooks
The word "humblest" in the above quote caused me to ponder, is there such a thing as "humblest?" It sort of sounds like an oxymoron. Are there levels to being humble? Humble, More Humble, Humbler, Humblest? Makes me chuckle thinking of it. Or would it be similar to the competitive spirit such as who's the fairest (humblest) of them all? I would tend to believe not. Regardless, humility is a character trait that is easily admired. Scripture tells us, "...a broken and contrite (humble) heart, O God, thou wilt not despise." (Psalm 51:17) Being humble can promote goodness in the world but, the personal benefit of humility is knowing God will never despise you or me.
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My great-grandma once said something to the effect of "the truly humble person doesn't have to announce the fact that they're humble". I thought that was cool and so true. :)
ReplyDeleteWeston - your great-grandma was right. That is partly the reason why I thought it was such an oxymoron to use the word "humblest." They are either humble or not humble. There isn't such a thing as "I'm more humble than you." ROFL Cracks me up to even imagine it.
ReplyDeleteI've heard Ravi Zacharias say "only God can humble you without humiliating you, and only He can exalt you without flattering you"
ReplyDeleteJames - I like that statement. Through my years of experience working with people, it usually takes a humiliating experience before people who think they are humble discover true humility. Once they become humble, they don't need flattery.
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