Ephesians 4:1-2

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.  Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the ACC women’s correctional facility for a baptismal service.  If you think you can’t learn something from women who have ended up in jail, you’d better adjust your thinking.  They had an enthusiasm for Jesus and an excitement about giving their lives to Him that I have rarely seen in over 70 years of living.  They realize that their past is pretty ugly, but their future in Christ is unlimited, and they had a love for one another that just couldn’t be contained in silence.

I think that is exactly what Paul is talking about in this passage.  He, too, was a prisoner, but he had learned some things about life that gave him a unique perspective.  It is from humility that we can gain respect and develop the kind of love relationships that make a real difference in life.  It’s not our pronouncements from our mountaintops of achievement that impact the world.  It is our sharing our mistakes and failures and encouraging others around us to climb with us out of our pits of despair that we can truly inspire others.  As we walk beside them in humility and love, we move them closer to the one who humbled himself to inspire us.