Being humbled is not fun. Have you ever gone through a season where God was humbling you? Being humbled hurts-it hurts to your core. It's more vulnerable than you ever want to be and stings deeper than you ever want to feel. And just when you think you can't take another hit, the hits just keep coming (because that's just what happens in those seasons). The truth is: God cares more about who you're becoming than where you're going. Hebrews 12:11 (NIV) says: "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." It seems painful, but your loving Father disciplines because He loves you. And He loves me. And if you're going to be true to you and the person that God created you to be in this bigger, better life, He's going to have to do some things in you before you're ready for it, or even before you can handle it. [share]God cares more about who you're becoming than where you're going.[/share] Being humbled is not a one and done type of thing. We're going to go through multiple seasons of this in life. Oswald Chambers, author of My Utmost for His Highest, describes these seasons as valleys of humiliation. Friend, if you're in a season of humbling right now or a valley of humiliation, God sees you. Deuteronomy 31:6 (NIV) says: "The Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." He's with you in this valley. And I know it's hard, and I know it hurts, but take comfort in the fact that God sees you, and He's with you. This season's not forever. He's doing something in you. I love the Bible verse Isaiah 60:22 (NLT) that says: "At the right time, I, the Lord, will make it happen." Yes, you and I need to work hard. It's up to us to steward what He's given us. It's up to us to be faithful. But it's not all up to us, because we would point back and go, Look how good I did. Look at everything I accomplished. Look how strong and smart and clever and talented I am. No, no. God says that you should work hard with what He's given you, but when the time's right, He'll make it happen. So, you've got to be willing to be humbled. Be willing to go through those hard seasons. Be willing to be faithful when it hurts, and when you feel lost, and when you feel wronged, and when you feel abandoned. Be willing to be faithful even there in the valley, because it's not forever. But God is doing something in you in that valley to prepare you for what's next. Journal Questions: I want you to simply ask yourself: Where do I need to be humbled? What does it look like for me to set my pride aside and be humbled before God and what He's doing right now? Remember: God's preparing you for something in this life that's bigger, better and more awesome than you could ever imagine.