Mmmm. Pie—my dessert of choice. It’s hard to get much better than a warm piece of homemade strawberry-rhubarb pie a la mode. It’s that perfect combination of sweet and tart, warm and cold.

But I’m not the only one obsessing over this dessert. At our local county fair there were recently hundreds of entries in the pie-baking contest (oh, to be the judge!).

I love having pie for special occasions. I’ve made it so many times, I don’t need the “Gran’s Pie Crust” recipe card to tell me to mix 2 cups of flour, 2/3 c. of oil, a dash of salt, and 1/3 c. of water and roll it out in circles between waxed paper—the simple recipe is written on my memory.

But, sadly, Gran’s homemade pie crust and all the yummy fillings it holds are not very nourishing. They don’t help me grow stronger, and better. So her pie must be saved for only rare occasions.

But I’ve been eating a steady diet of another type of pie lately—one that IS good for me. It’s humble pie.

Now we all know that we aren’t perfect (unless we struggle with narcissism…) and we’d readily admit that there’s room for improvement in our lives. But facing our own shortcomings head on still isn’t easy. It can be downright unpleasant.

I recently taught at a few women’s events. I was grateful for the opportunity, but I realized that I still have much to learn. So, I sought feedback from each audience. These women were very kind to give me feedback, encouragement, and ways to improve.

While the feedback was overwhelmingly supportive, there were suggestions of things I can do better (of course! That’s the whole idea!). And while I am eternally grateful for this chance to eat humble pie, it isn’t always easy to swallow.

Even though heaps and heaps of encouragement have been piled upon me, it’s hard to hear that I misjudged the format for the group and led a lecture when discussion was more appropriate. It’s hard to hear that my style came off too rote and not conversational enough. It’s hard to hear that I forgot to spit out my gum before the lesson and chewed it the whole way through (yikes!!!).

But as hard as it is to hear these cringe-worthy things, knowing them enables me to address them, and helps me to avoid making the same mistakes moving forward. Humility gives me the chance to grow.

The Bible is clear that humility is not only good for the believer, but a necessary condition (Proverbs 22:4). It positions us to receive God’s grace (James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5) and favor (Proverbs 3:34). Humility is wise (Proverbs 11:2) and comes before honor (Proverbs 15:33, Proverbs 18:12, Luke 14:11, Luke 18:14). We are to dress ourselves in it like clothing (1 Peter 5:5, Colossians 3:12).

We know humility is a good thing. We applaud the senior doctor that stays on after her 12-hour shift to help nurses push stretchers in the crowded ER. We admire the spouse who lovingly cares for his mate who can no longer care for herself. But why, then, is it so hard for us to practice?

Why was it so hard for me to apologize to a long-time friend for my mistakes? Why was it so hard to admit when I’ve been wrong? To face my shortcomings?

Often the most difficult things in life are also those things which put our growth in Christ on the fast track. In facing our own humanity, our own miserable inadequacies, we see our desperate need for Christ.

In facing our own humanity, our own miserable inadequacies, we see our desperate need for Christ. Share on X

Philippians 2 speaks of Christ’s humility. It says: “…in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.”

Even though it’s hard to swallow, if eating more of that good-for-me humble pie makes me like Jesus, I’m in! That’s the best pie I’ve ever eaten.

Tags: devotions, Jesus, purposeful living, quiet time, repentance, Self-discipline, sin, surrender, wisdom