Humility of the Heart

Being a sports fan my entire life, I have always watched athletes and paid close attention to the way they conduct themselves on and off the field. In particular I have always watched for humility in these athletes.

To me, I’d always thought humility was most clearly displayed through those who gave their teammates the credit, handed the ball to the official after a touchdown, or celebrated a goal in a respectable way. Lately, however, I’ve realized that this is only the beginning of what true humility means. It’s easy for athletes to appear humble on the surface by doing the aforementioned things when everything is going well, but true humility really occurs in the heart.

As athletes, it is important to realize that we need to humble ourselves before God, realizing that He is in control both when things are going well and when they’re going poorly. Our true value is given to us by God, and He is the One who allows us to compete. Everything we do should be accomplished in His name. Giving teammates credit, handing the ball to the official, and celebrating in a respectable way are all good ways to play the game, but we can’t forget that it is all ultimately about honoring the Lord. Once we understand that, we will have that true humility in our hearts, and our actions will reflect it no matter what happens on the field.