«Surely He scorns the scornful, But gives grace to the humble» (Proverbs 3:34).
Dwight L. Moody was the most famous evangelist at the end of the 19th century. People attended his meetings from all over the world to listen to him. A large group of pastors from Europe went to Massachusetts in the United States to hear him. They were assigned to rooms in the student residences of the Bible school. As was their custom, the men left their shoes outside the door of their room so that the service staff could polish them during night.
However, that kind of service did not exist in the American residence. While Moody was making his nightly rounds of the halls to pray for his visitors, he saw the shoes and realized what had happened. He mentioned the situation to a couple of his students, but not one of them offered to help. Without saying a word, the great preacher gathered up all the shoes and took them to his own room to clean and polish them. He did not tell anyone what he had done, but a friend who interrupted him in the middle of his silent work helped him finish and later told the story of what had happened.
Despite the praise and fame he received through God’s blessing on his life and ministry, Moody remained humble. «At a feast it was customary for a servant to wash the feet of the guests, and on this occasion preparation had been made for the service. The pitcher, the basin, and the towel were there, in readiness for the feet washing; but no servant was present, and it was the disciples’ part to perform it. But each of the disciples, yielding to wounded pride, determined not to act the part of a servant. . . . By their silence they refused to humble themselves. . . . The disciples made no move toward serving one another. Jesus waited for a time to see what they would do» (The Desire of Ages, ch. 71, p. 644).
I do not know where you live, what the customs are in your place of origin, or what foreign customs you have had to assimilate. What does not change anywhere in the world is human pride.
What is the hallway you are walking through today? How many “shoes” will you have to clean? It will be your decision.
Jesus is also waiting today to see what we are going to do.
