The Dawn Treader

Sounds like a good book.  Maybe the good folks at Worthy Publishing will send Mr. Dawntreader a reader's copy so I can review on my blog.

"He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way." ~ Psalm 25:9

I am camping out in Psalm 25 these days.  It is indeed rich pasture to graze in.  Today's truth comes from verse 9. Humility is a precondition to wisdom.  Indeed, it is the mark of wisdom.

The humble maintain a posture of honesty, repentance, teachableness, and faith.  You see these attitudes beautifully displayed in Psalm 25.

"Consider my affliction and my trouble, and forgive all my sins."
"For your name's sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great."
"Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions"

"Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths."
"Lead me in your truth and teach me"
"Good and upright is the Lord, therefore he instructs sinners in the way."

"O my God, in you I trust"
"for you I wait all the day long."
"Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me! Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you."

Humility is active.  It is a posture.  It is a way of living.  It is ongoing.  It is the hallmark of wisdom.

Lord, thank you for the full textured view of a humble, well-lived life in Psalm 25.  Help me to imitate such a life for your name's sake.

David at Jollyblogger eloquently and honestly reflects on the greatest danger of blogging to the Christian: self-promotion.

"Facing death does at least one thing that is marvelous – it frees you to be honest with yourself and with God.  I don’t have to pretend I was only sold out to Jesus through the years.  He knew I wasn’t, and since I may see Him soon, I have less reason to keep up the charade.  The truth is that I had many personal ambitions which I looked to stamp with His name on them.  These ambitions included a certain level of achievement within the church, recognition of gifts and ever expanding influence.  So in truth, my preaching and blogging served those ends to quite a degree."

David was a great influence on me in my early blogging years.  I admired his writing, wisdom and wit (and still do).  He blogged in a gospel-centered way that I found inspiring and worthy of imitating.  As I pursued blogging and began to experience early blogging success in 2004 and 2005, I began to taste the allure of self-promotion.  I began to make a name for myself.  I sensed that blogging had become part of my identity and self-worth.

Taking four years off from serious blogging has really helped me.  The danger is always there, however.

David's reflections are spot on and all of us who blog and name the name of Christ ought to read his post and pray and honestly reflect that we are in it for the right reasons.

David closes with this truth.

And I know this beyond a shadow of a doubt – self-promotion can not be accommodated in true Christianity.  In True Christianity, the self has to disappear, not be promoted.

I know one more thing beyond a shadow of a doubt.  Jesus died for people who find it hard to die for Him.  He’ll catch you when you are dying.  You don’t need that self you were trying to promote, you need His grace – to the degree you can ditch the self, to that degree you’ll get more of Him.