The Humble Heart December 14, 2025

Christmas rarely looks like the postcard in my head. I picture cocoa by the fire and calm, but what I often get is sibling rivalry, lost scissors, crooked lights, and a dehydrated turkey that could double as packing material. In that gap between expectation and reality, I feel the urge to take control—of people, outcomes, timelines, even my own image. But that clutching at control isn’t strength; it’s pride. And pride whispers, “I’m strong enough. I’ll fix it,” until my heart is so full of managing that there’s no room left for God.

The first Christmas reminds me that God didn’t wait for a polished scene. He came into a humble, unpolished, unexpected place. Mary didn’t have a palace, a plan, or even a way to explain what was happening. Still, when the angel spoke, she said, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” Her response wasn’t denial or spin-control; it was surrender. That kind of humility isn’t weakness—it’s the doorway where God comes close, speaks, and works.

What does humility look like for us? Three movements. First, trust the promises of God when you can’t see the plan. We don’t get step-by-step clarity; we get presence: “I am with you.” Second, embrace God’s purpose even when it disrupts your plans. Obedience will complicate your calendar and reputation, but it also clarifies your identity: “I am the Lord’s.” Third, learn to praise before the outcome is known. Mary’s song rises not after relief, but in the middle of uncertainty. Worship makes space in the heart that worry crowds out.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: we think we’re holding everything together, but much of that is illusion. Humility begins where clarity ends. It sounds like, “God, I don’t know, but You do.” This season, pry your hands off the things you’re trying to manage into submission. Trust that the One who began a good work will carry it to completion. Let your prayer be Mary’s prayer: “Let it be to me as You have said.”

Key Takeaways

• 1. Control is pride in disguise Pride often masquerades as responsibility, but its root is the belief that outcomes depend on our strength and strategy. It closes the heart and crowds out space for God’s presence. Naming control as pride is the first step toward freedom. Humility starts where our need to manage ends. [08:09]
• 2. Humility makes room for Jesus Pride pushes God away; humility creates space for Him to stay. Surrender doesn’t remove uncertainty, but it invites God into it, which changes the kind of person we become in the process. Mary shows that the right posture precedes the right outcome. Presence before answers, surrender before strategy. [14:10]
• 3. Trust promises when clarity ends We don’t get detailed timelines; we get faithful promises: God is with us, hears us, guides us, and provides. Trust is not pretending to understand; it’s resting in the One who does. Humility says, “I don’t see it yet, but I stake my hope on Your word.” That is where real peace is born. [26:29]
• 4. Praise before you know the outcome Mary’s worship rises before explanations and guarantees. Praise is not denial; it’s a reorientation—naming God’s faithfulness louder than our fear. Worship expands our souls so we can carry both uncertainty and hope without collapsing. It turns chaos into a place of encounter. [20:52]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [01:03] - Norman Rockwell vs. real Christmas
• [03:30] - Our urge to control
• [06:00] - The humble setting of Christmas
• [08:09] - Pride hides inside control
• [10:59] - Where we cling to control
• [14:10] - Pride pushes, humility makes room
• [17:53] - Reading Luke 1:26–38
• [20:52] - Mary’s “Let it be” response
• [24:15] - Movements of a humble heart
• [26:29] - Humility when clarity ends
• [29:28] - Embracing purpose that disrupts plans
• [32:34] - Invitation to surrender and trust
• [33:30] - Prayer and closing (implied)

1. Read Luke 1:26–38. What details in the text reveal Mary’s confusion, risk, and lack of control? What does she know for certain at the end of the encounter?
2. In Luke 1:38 Mary says, “I am the Lord’s servant; may it be to me as you have said.” What words or actions in the passage show that this is a posture of trust rather than denial or spin-control?
3. Where in everyday life do people try to “fix” situations in ways that look like the examples given (delayed timelines, unexpected bills, strained relationships)? Consider the phrase “control is pride in disguise.” "Control is pride in disguise" [08:09] How does that description match your own instincts?
4. What images or phrases in Mary’s song (the Magnificat) point toward praise in the middle of uncertainty rather than praise after answers arrive?

1. How does the posture “I am the Lord’s servant” reshape a person’s sense of responsibility for outcomes and for reputation? "Humility makes room for Jesus" [14:10]
2. If “humility begins when clarity ends,” how should that affect a person’s response when timelines and plans fall apart? Consider what humility practically looks like the day after a plan collapses. "Humility begins when clarity ends" [26:29]
3. What difference does praising God before the outcome make to a person’s inner life and to those around them? How does praise function differently than anxious problem-solving? "Praise before you know the outcome" [20:52]
4. When the text and sermon say humility “creates space for God to stay,” what barriers (shame, fear of looking weak, reputation concerns) typically keep people from that posture? How might those barriers be removed? "Humility makes room for him to stay" [24:15]

1. Identify one area where you feel driven to control outcomes (finances, family, reputation, schedule). What would it look like to genuinely say, “Let it be as you have said,” in that area this week? "Let it be as you have said" [32:34]
2. Name a current plan or timeline God may be asking you to embrace that disrupts your agenda. What is one small, practical first step you can take this week to move toward that step of obedience? "embrace God’s purpose even when it disrupts your plans" [29:28]
3. When you lose clarity and begin to worry, which promise (for example: God is with you; God will not leave you) will you claim daily? How will you remind yourself of that promise (note, phone reminder, Scripture card)? "Humility begins when clarity ends" [26:29]
4. Write a short, honest sentence of praise you can say each morning this week (one line that names God’s faithfulness rather than the problem). Try it for three days and note if it changes your mood or choices. "Praise before you know the outcome" [20:52]
5. Who is one person you can invite into your struggle so you stop carrying everything alone? When will you contact them and what will you ask them to do (listen, pray, help practically)? "pry your grubby little paws off of it" [32:34]
6. Pick a single control impulse (the next time you want to fix something immediately). Instead of acting, pause and pray: “God, I don’t know, but You do.” What happened when you tried this pause for one day? "God, I don't know, but You do." [26:29]