Humility

During World War II, Winston Churchill was awarding the Victoria Cross to an Air Force sergeant who had climbed out onto the wing of his bomber with only a rope attached to his waist - while it was 13,000 feet in the air. His efforts saved both the plane and his fellow crewmembers.

At the ceremony, the soldier was so overwhelmed by Churchill's presence that he could barely speak. Churchill observed this and said, "You must be very humble and awkward in my presence," to which the sergeant replied, "Yes, sir."

Then the Prime Minister responded, "Then you can imagine how humble and awkward I feel in yours."

It is often the characteristic of great men and women that they possess a genuine sense of humility. Humility is one of the things that makes them great.

(Today in the Word, Moody Bible Institute, August 2003)