Eating Some Humble Pie
Monday, March 24, 2025
“No man is great if he thinks he is.” – Will Rogers
Rhett Palmer, a local radio talk show host here in Vero Beach, has had the privilege of interviewing scores of very famous people over his long and distinguished broadcasting career. One of his favorites was Billy Graham, whose family used to vacation in Vero Beach.
As Rhett tells the story, he was interviewing Dr. Graham when the conversation turned to the subject of humility. Paraphrasing Rhett, he asked Dr. Graham how he had remained so humble over the course of his long ministry career during which he had preached to millions of people and met with every U.S. President from Truman to Trump.
“Well, Rhett,” Dr. Graham answered in his slow, southern drawl, “the fact that we’re sitting here talking about humility means we don’t have it yet”.
Funny, but true.
Humility is an elusive quality. You can’t pursue it, because that would be arrogant. On the contrary, it finds you, usually through life’s course of ups and downs… and often more downs than ups.
Before God could refer to Moses as the humblest man on earth (see Numbers 12:3), He had to break him of his pride. Raised as a prince in pharaoh’s palace, Moses spent 40 years tending sheep on the backside of the desert. Likewise, before Joseph could serve as prime minister of Egypt, God had to use slavery and an unjust prison sentence to remove his youthful arrogance.
Jesus told an excellent parable about the pitfalls of pride… and the honor that accompanies humility.
“When you are invited to a wedding banquet, do not sit in the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited. Then the host who invited both of you will come and tell you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ And in humiliation, you will have to take the last place. But when you are invited, go and sit in the last place, so that your host will come and tell you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in front of everyone at the table with you. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” Luke 14:8-11 (BSB)
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you at the proper time.” I Peter 5:6 (ESV)
- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President
