Walk Humbly

 

"He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you.  But to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8 NKJV).

The Lord has requirements for us who purport to be His followers.  When we say we have faith then 'works' should be forthcoming.  He has shown us that this is good.  When we walk humbly with our God, we will be just and love mercy.  And these can just keep going round and round in ascending, continuous circles creating within us that humility that characterized our Lord Jesus.

Thinking of others as being equally of value, that God loves them just as much as He loves me, and that Jesus died on the cross for them, just as much as He did for me is helpful thinking.  It can help us develop humility within, that comes from our hearts.

"So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets" (Matthew 7:12 ESV).

This is what people call The Golden Rule.  It certainly is a good way to govern our lives when we wish to cultivate humility in our character and attitudes.  After all, it is one of our Lord's requirements.

It will help us to act more justly and to love mercy.  We will be less selfish, we will gain greater understanding of others, have more empathy for them and show it out in acts of compassion.  We will live more for the good of others than for ourselves.

The Bible also tells us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.  Is this then a contradiction?  I don't believe so.  We need to be able to accept ourselves as God has made us.  We need to understand our own strengths and weaknesses; that we do have limitations.  When we can understand and accept these about ourselves, then we can develop that understanding and care for others more genuinely and patiently and with greater forbearance.

The apostle Paul was given a thorn in his flesh to remind himself of such.  He realized then that God's grace was sufficient. We too can do the same for ourselves as we then interact with others.

Father God, we do want to do what is good and what you require of us.  Give us reminders that we need to walk humbly with You, to be just and merciful even as Jesus, our perfect example, was.  We ask in Jesus' name, amen.

                                             ~ ERC - November 2025 ~

Based on Micah 6:8 NKJV.

Sing, Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly, along with Pat Barrett.

Lord's Day Devotion - HAIKU - Joyful Blessing

 Songs of praise

Blessing You Jesus, our hearts

Raised with joyful song.

Songs of sacrifice

Offered with willing hearts' full

Gratitude, sing praise.

Thank You, our Jesus,

In You we have redemption.

We remember You.

Lord Jesus, we are glad and rejoice this Lord's Day, remembering You and all You've done for us by and through the breaking of bread and drinking of the cup.  We thank You and bless Your name that is above all other names, Jesus.  Amen.

                                                ~ ERC  December 2025 ~

Based on Hebrews 13:15 and Ephesians 1:7 ESV.

Sing, Remember Me, along with Hosanna Music.

What IS Humility?

 

When we walk in the fear of the Lord we begin to walk in humility.  This life brings reverence and respect for God and His will and ways for who He is and what He has done for us.  We begin to appreciate Him and get a glimpse of Jesus' attitude when He walked this earth.

The spiritual riches, honor and life are given as rewards to individuals who walk in humility.  Proverbs 22:4 ESV tells us this.

"The reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches, and honor and life."

Are these rewards motivation to put on humility?  I don't think so.  That would be pride in what we have accomplished by ourselves.

Is it prosperity gospel?  It may sound like it.  Perhaps we may prosper materially but I think it more likely to be spiritual benefit.

Submission to our Heavenly Father will be evidence of humility.  God's mercy and grace will be treasures to adorn ourselves with and God will be able to honor this allowing for a more meaningful life in general and in serving our Lord and Savior, more specifically.  Our ambitions will have more godly purposes and principles, governing our lives to please and honor Him in return.

I had a friend tell me recently that the company she was part of ran on Christian principles.  They had integrity and other companies in competition with them, acknowledged this. Her company came to be trusted by others as well as by their clients.  In this they were honored because they feared the Lord and walked in humility even as they meted out their professional services.

What is this humility I write about?  It's realizing we ourselves are not more important than others.  We realize our own shortcomings and limitations.  We do not boast.  We see our own strengths as well as weaknesses.  We come to realize other peoples thoughts, ideas and opinions have merit too and even praise others' accomplishments, encouraging them to share their ideas and input.  The Lord honored them in this way.

One difficult aspect of honing humility, which can be a huge hurdle to overcome is to admit our mistakes.  A close second would be to be able to forgive and to apologize to others.

Christ is always our example in everything.  Oops, He never made mistakes, but I'm talking about His attitudes.  That familiar passage in Philippians 2:1-10.  This can be our standard.  Jesus definitely looked after the interests of others, taking the form of a servant.  And as we can see, Jesus humbled Himself, which led to His obedience to His Father's will.  His Father honored and

 "bestowed [upon] Him the name that is above every name" (Philippians 2:9 ESV).

In culmination of all this, we get a surface glance at what humility could look like in anyone who wishes to walk in humility and the fear of the Lord.  Fear of the Lord, reverence, submission to the Lord's will and mercy and grace adornment, for starters.

Godly purposes and principles steer our lives; we see others of equal value; we are able to admit to our mistakes, forgive others and apologize to them.  We take Jesus as our example of humility, and become His obedient servant.

No doubt there is so much more.  He makes all things beautiful in His time, so follow Jesus' footsteps.  As we live like this, I think our clothes of humility will become more vibrant.  

Let's begin this journey today ...

                                                      ~ ERC  November 2025 ~

Based on Proverbs 22:4, Philippians 2:1-10 ESV.

Sing, In His Time, along with the Maranatha Singers.

 

Book Review - The Widow's Vow - By Rachel Brimble - Publication Date: 16 December 2025

 This is a most unusual book for me to read as it fascinated me.  Not that I condone prostitution, but the storyline did give me a better understanding of this way of life and how a woman could come into it.

 The author kept a lively pace laced with suspense and intrigue that kept the story moving forward.  I found the characters, such as Lousia Hill, Nancy, Octavia and Jacob, strong and often fearsome, yet layered with some unexpected genteelness.

 Those readers who do not wish to read of intimate bedroom scenes may wish to be cautious with this narrative.  Other than this, I found the book to be a very satisfactory read.

 

                                                ~ Eunice C.,  Reviewer/Blogger ~

                                                             December 2026

 

Disclaimer:  This is my honest opinion based on the complimentary review copy sent to me by NetGalley and the publisher.

Read review on Goodreads.

Fresh Fish (John 21 ESV)

 Would you like to have some fresh fish and bread for breakfast?  Jesus BBQ-ed some fish for His disciples at the seashore one morning after He'd risen from the dead.

The five:  Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, James and John had been out all night fishing.  They didn't catch a thing and as they neared land, they saw a man standing on the shore.

He asked them to cast their net out on the right side of the boat.  Wow!  Their net immediately filled with 153 fish.  What a catch!  Then they knew the man was Jesus.

But Jesus had already been grilling some fish.  He asked them to add some of theirs to the mini-breakfast banquet.

Jesus' target was Simon Peter.  He came to where Peter was at.  Whatever mental state Peter was in, quite possibly dying of guilt and sorrow for having publically denying he knew Jesus, that he was actually one of His disciples.  But Jesus knew Peter's true heart.  He'd come to 'fish' Peter the fisherman back through the lure of fish.

And Peter got it.  Then Jesus bridges the gap and gives Peter his personal mission.  A very touching scene that must have impacted John, too.

Once again, Jesus was not only the breakfast chef but the server as well.  He,

"took bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish" (John 21:13 ESV).

He had cooked, fed, and served them.  Likely the men had been hungry after working all night.  Perhaps they were even discouraged.  So Jesus tended to these needs.  Then He addressed the elephant in the room, so to speak, with Peter.

This was such a wonderfully gracious approach Jesus had of restoring Peter in relationship.  It serves us brothers and sisters-in-Christ well now.  Let's remember to serve our fellow believers in Christ 'fresh fish' and treat each other gently even if and when we need to confront issues between and/or among us.

This is the 'kettle of fish' I like.

                                              ~ ERC  November 2025 ~

Based on John 21 ESV.

Sing, Speak Life, along with Toby Mac.

Early Riser (John 20:1-18 ESV)

 

They say that

 "the early bird gets the worm,"

 but what do early risers get?  I think they get the best of the day.  Certainly, Mary Magdalene got the suprize and shock of her life but she also got the privilege of hearing the best news of all time.  She was the privileged one.

She'd gone to Jesus tomb early,

 "while it was still dark" (John 20:1 ESV).  

She saw the stone rolled away and the body of Jesus, NOT there!

She became the messeger of this upsetting-to-her news.  She ran and told Peter and John and they in turn rushed to the tomb to see for themselves.

I can imagine them huffing and puffing after this early morning run.  Examining the linens that had wrapped Jesus in a mummy cocoon and the one that had been around his head, lying separately and neatly folded up.  They seemed to have been dumbfounded about this find.  Bewildered and perplexed, they went home.

But Mary had stayed.  As she mourned and wept, Jesus revealed Himself to her, He called her by name, "Mary."  He'd called this "little sheep" by name and then she knew.  She knew the man she at first mistook for the gardener.  He was actually her Master and Lord, "Rabboni!" she exclaimed.  Then Jesus entrusted her with a message for

 "[his] brothers" (vs 17).

And she goes and says,

 "I have seen the Lord" (vs 18).

  And He had spoken with her!  How blessed she was.

Mary Magdalene had physically seen the Lord.  For us nowadays, we can still see Him with our spiritual eyes.  We can spend time with Him, reading His words, listening to His voice teaching us and calling to us through His Holy Spirit.  How blessed when we hear and listen and obey.  We can be His messengers with the important message of His love and care and salvation.

More than this, this listening and obedience denotes intimacy with Christ.  We can continue to build relationship with Him, perhaps even as an early riser when there are fewer distractions in the quiet hour before dawn.

As the birds begin to wake and sing their songs of praise to the Lord, we too can arise and bring messages of God's love to others because we had sat a while with Jesus, listening and learning.  And when He calls your name, you'll know it's Him, your

 "Lord Jesus, Savior, Friend."

Hallelujah!

                                               ~ ERC November 2025 ~

Based on John 20:1-18 ESV.

Sing, The Love of Jesus, along with Mack Brock.

Sanctified By Truth (John 17:6-20, especially vs 17-20 ESV)

 IT's really interesting that some animals 'wash' their food before eating it.  Racoons are the most well known for this behavior.  Wild boars and rats have also been observed doing this.  I learned that it's more to get a 'feel' for the food to determine its size, shape, and if it is harmless to eat.

Many of us humans wash our vegetables, fruit and meat before cooking and eating them.  We examine them for acceptability, much the same as the animals' behaviour with their food.  It's almost like we are sanctifying it.  We set apart the good bits to eat that hopefully won't make us sick when we do.

Christians are well known for giving thanks to God for their food before eating.  This is seen as another way to sanctify our food.  It acknowledges that we believe God is the ultimate source of our provisions.  They come from Him, and giving Him such thanks, makes it 'holy.'  Further to this, eating can then be seen like an act of worship.

It bothers me very much then, when we give God thanks for our food and then a few mouthfuls in, we begin to complain and criticize the food.  I have been guilty of this.  For this behavior we do need to repent.

Anyone looking on and eavesdropping could be confused.  On one hand Christians give God thanks for their food but in the next breath they are bad-mouthing what they'd just declared thanks for.  It is something to do more than just think about, to rectify this behavior.

But I digress ...

What I really want to focus on is that Jesus, in His prayer for His disciples asks His Father, God, to ...

"Sanctify them through Thy truth:  Thy Word is truth" (John 17:17 KJV).

It's like Jesus 'washes' His disciples with the washing of the water of His Word.  Jesus' act of giving Himself up for the church was also His way to sanctify her, again with the

 "washing of water with the word" (Ephesians 5:26 ESV).

If this is so, how imperative it is for us to continue to read the Word of God.  We were initially sanctified through our salvation. But in the wear and tear of our daily lives we need to be rinsed off again and again.  We do so through the truth of God's Word when we read it and put it into action.

I always like that addendum in John 17 and verse 20, where Jesus adds,

"Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word" (KJV).

The sanctified eleven had their mission to pass the baton of God's sanctifying truth on to others and all down the ages it has continued to us brothers and sisters-in-Christ today.  May we diligently do likewise until death parts us from this world or until Jesus calls us all up to be with Him forever.

Let's live sanctified lives until then.

                                                    ~ ERC  November 2025 ~

Based on John 17:6-20 KJV, especially vs 17-20.

Sing, Sanctify Us in Your Truth, along with Uplifting Christian Song House of Faith Voices and Purify My Heart, along with Brian Doerksen.