God is, by very nature, gracious, kind, loving and giving.

These are not attributes that describe or define Him but rather find their description and definition in Himand from Him these are extended to all creation.

Of all these perhaps the most overlooked is the lastHis gifts. Grace is a gift to us. Love is a gift to us. Kindness is a gift to us. Now the order of these could be reversed; we could say that the Lord gives because he is gracious, loving, and kind. This also is true. But here and now, I particularly want to focus on giving, for if God in Himself possessed all grace, love, and kindness, but lacked charity we would know nothing of the former three.

Every good thing in the human experience is a gift from Him. In fact there isnt a single thing in this universe, even the universe itself, which we could observe or possess that He has not given to us. That you obtained this in order to read it is a gift. The ability to read or hear this is a gift. Written and verbal language are gifts. The breath you take even now as you read or listen is a gift. Without the eternal Creator holding every detail of the universe in tact, we would cease to existour existence and every aspect of it, is altogether dependent upon Him.

In this I do not mean only that our physical lives are a gift from Him. That would be a gross understatement and, perhaps, even misleading. Christ has given us not only life, but eternal life. Our ability to think and reason and process are gifts from Him. Therefore the ability to believe in Him is a gift as well. Belief and trust in the savior are essentially

thoughts or acts of obedience. So our ability to obey Him also comes from Him, making any godly characteristics in our possession also gifts from Him.

It is only in this state of mind or being, that true humility can be possessed, or rather, take possession of us. Why is this so? Pride. Humility cannot begin to dwell within us where there is pride. Pride is the antithesis, the enemy, the polar-opposite of humility and it runs deeper than any of us think, because that is where it beginsin our thoughts. We cannot escape it on our own. It is the default position of every fallen human. Pride will disguise itself as humility, or nobility in our actions when we dont even realize it.

I am guilty of this more than anyone Ive ever known. When I look at why I am offended, it nearly always is because my pride is hurt. I may not lash out in return. I may even think myself noble in my restraint. But again, even this thought is pride. In pure honesty, I may say that I write this for the Lord, that He would use it to touch others, but some place deep down I want someone to know that the Lord used me to touch their life. I want some kind, any kind of recognition for my service to the Lord. Even my desires to be humble are, in my pride, simply longings for recognition and exaltation.

The deeper I dive into my own heart and my own motives, the more I am disappointed to find this ugly pride. The more I fight it, the more I try to be humble or noble or godly, the more I see what I cannot do. I have tried to obtain it; I have diligently asked for it, but the more effort I put in, the more heartbreaking the failure. You may be thinking, This is so depressing. I need a pill to keep reading, but the truth is that this should not drive us to

depression; it should drive us to our knees. And this is exactly where humility can begin to have its place. When Im on my knees in complete submission and dependence upon Christ, and His work in me, not mine, I am able to believe what was stated in the first few paragraphsthat only the Lord Jesus can sustain me through His power and His gifts and that I am utterly helpless without Him.

The vanquishing of pride and the emergence of humility are not things that we can obtain. These, like all else are gifts from our loving, gracious Father. We cannot earn them through merit, nor find them within ourselves.

Finally, why do we fail to conquer our pride? Why do we endure such sorrowful failures? We trust not the One who gives us all things. We trust the gifts he has given, the things he has created, we trust formulas, we trust others, we trust ourselves, but we do not trust Him. Pride is what keeps us from trusting Him. Give to Him your heart and mind, allow Him to work in you. Ask and it shall be given to you, seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall be open to you. Humility comes from a gracious, and generous God.