Key Bible Verse: And further, you will submit to one another out of reverence for Christ (Ephesians 5:21). Bonus Reading: Matthew 8:5-13

Submission doesn't make you subservient or make you lose your independence. It shows that you know how to fit in the universe. Consider a restaurant. The server tells you where to sit, decides when and how to take your order, and brings you your food and drink in the manner he or she deems appropriate.

Humility is the character trait that produces proper submission. To some people humility suggests groveling, in the manner of Dickens's slimy character Uriah Heep. But people who constantly devalue themselves probably just want attention. Genuinely humble people rank themselves neither too high nor too low. They can take the lowest job, if that needs doing, and not feel demoralized. Humble people can also take the lead where appropriate, and feel no sense of superiority.

Humble people don't worry about status. They care about getting work done in the best way possible. When that requires submission, no problem.

Submitting to a server in a restaurant doesn't make me inferior to him. If he plays on the softball team I coach, our roles are reversed. We must both move smoothly between submission and leadership, depending on the situation.

—Tim Stafford in Never Mind the Joneses

My Response: Which is harder for me: filling a subservient role or taking the lead?

Thought to Apply: The humble person walks in full confidence, knowing he's simply a channel through whom God wants to accomplish his work.—Andrew Murray

Adapted from Never Mind the Joneses (InterVarsity, 2004) by permission.

Prayer for the Week

Lord, combine in my life self-effacing humility and quiet confidence in your power.

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