Did you know that the humble pie is not a physical pie? In those days, when people go to the butcher and ask for a humble, they are asking for the inside of an animal, especially of a deer, to be used as food. The original term for the humbles is numbles, from the Middle French nobles, acquired as a variant umbles, sometimes later spelt humbles. At some point, however, the resemblance of the deer’s humility became irresistible, and the literal pie became a metaphorical one signifying self-abasement. When somebody tells you to go and eat the humble pie these days, it simply means that you exhibit some prideful character and you need to humble yourself.

We all need to humble ourselves. Pride is not a character that exalts anybody. Rather, it destroys. To some extent, our inside should also be irresistible to God and to others. We should reflect on the state of our hearts and work to grow in humility because God is more attracted to a humble heart than a prideful heart. Although we all have the tendency to be prideful, we ought to repent of this and ask the Lord to give us a heart of humility. We should ask the Lord for a change of heart as such is a humble heart that the Lord exalts. Before Jacob could return to his homeland to face his twin brother, Esau, the Lord had to work on his heart for twenty-one years under his uncle Laban. Jacob had learnt so many life lessons, including that of humility, that it was easier for him to humble himself when faced with his twin brother Esau. Continue reading “Cultivating Humility Character Declarations” →

Humility is not one of the Christian character traits we often see or find in people these days. Everybody is self-centred and self-focused. In fact, the media often encourages us to take pride in ourselves, to put our best foot forward with no consideration for others, to fight for that promotion above others and to take pride in our achievements. But this is not the message of Christ. Continue reading “The Message of Christ: Be Humble” →