Micah 6:8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Humility. Humility is defined as a modest opinion or estimate of one’s own importance or rank; the quality or state of not thinking you are better than other people; not proud or arrogant. John Dixon in his book Humilitas defined it as “the noble choice to forgo your status, deploy your resources or use your influence for the good of others before yourself … more simply a humble person is marked by a willingness to hold power in the service of others.”
I’m amazed at how often in the Scriptures God recognizes humility. Moses was characterized as more humble than any man on the face of the earth. In James 4:6 God says, He opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. And, one of the most evil characters in all of scripture, Ahab, was recognized by God when he humbled himself before the Lord after Elijah delivered his prophecy about Ahab’s death.
It is true in the business world. Jim Collins in his book Good to Great recognizes the Level 5 leader -one who is a paradoxical mix of personal humility and professional will. Dr. Raymond Edmond, the former president of Wheaton College stated, “It is our job to develop servants and it is God’s responsibility to choose the leaders.”
Think of the people you want to follow or that have had a major impact on your life. My guess is that you have been drawn to them by their willingness to invest in your life. You have admired their character. And their achievements or successes have not been flaunted before you. Isn’t that humility?
Of course our example is Jesus in Philippians 2, Have this attitude in yourself which was also in Christ Jesus … He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross. Jesus in Matthew 11:29 says, Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
So what am I saying? Do you want to be like Jesus? Do you want God to notice you, to give you grace, to exalt you at the proper time? Do you want to be an effective leader, one who people will follow because of your example and influence? Cultivate humility. Practice humility. 
I covet your prayers as we are going through a time of transition both in Jackson and WBL. For the Fall, we have a golf tournament November 2nd and our banquet November 6th with the dynamic speaker, Ron Andrews. He came in September of 2012 and he is one of my favorites. Plus there is the continuous health and growth of all our discipleship group leaders and groups for which we pray.
Thank you for your continual faithfulness to YBL. I am grateful. I will leave you with three statements from John Dixon’s book Humilitas: A. Persuasion and example our keys to effective leadership. B. Humility enhances persuasiveness, partly because it is a compelling character trait in leaders. C. Therefore, humility is important for leadership.
Let’s strive for this kind of leadership.
In our Lord,
Phil