Humbled: Bill Hybels
“Genuine confidence and excellence link arms with humility. Together they crush pride. True confidence, excellence, and humility are not oppositional. They’re friends. But there is no genuine confidence and excellence without true humility.” - Meant to Live: Living in Light of the Good News
Lately, there’s been deep sadness caused by high profile Christian leaders that have fallen miserably from leadership positions or walked away from their faith. News about Willow Creek Community Church’s founding pastor Bill Hybels’ sexual abuse allegations (now confirmed) have been, to say the very least, distressing.
I have these thoughts as I consider the man and the situation:
1. As the ministry grew, I’m sure Hybels believed he had safeguards in place to keep grounded. What happened? For example, was he too high profile, too authoritative or persuasive to actually empower people around him who would say, “I see this in your life, Bill. What’s going on here?”
2. I now know first-hand the pressure that’s on you when you’re in full-time paid ministry. Building a ministry is tough! No longer can you just sit with God without the Scripture you’re reading turning into a lesson you want to teach, or spark an idea for some great talk. That’s a very real tension. Then there’s the tension of standing up to speak about God’s faithfulness and calling people back to the Church when you know with 100% certainty they’ll be hurt again, and when you yourself sometimes feel so low. When the pressure was way high, how exactly did Hybels handle it? (Forget the platitudes and textbook answers. How did he really handle it?)
3. It takes confidence to work through your issues with God and a few people you can depend on. It takes humility to say, “I know people see me like this, but my interior world is sliding. I’m off-kilter.”
It seemed Bill Hybels had the excellence down: Willow Creek Community Church has been used by God as a resource to the global Church for decades. Behind Christ, Hybels was at the helm. I’m so grateful for them! But, good Lord, if we don’t infuse our excellence with genuine confidence that only comes when it’s draped in and infused with humility, this Christian celebrity craze, this lack of confrontation before it’s too late, this want of ownership for a life of holiness and honor - is going to take down anyone called by God to do “greater things.”
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” - Micah 6:8
I’m real because God is so real.
~ Nancy
CALLING:
Where do you fall on the humility scale? With 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest, how genuine is your own humility? Do you have someone in your life that keeps you grounded? If not, ask God to give you someone.
I discuss this topic in my first book, Meant to Live: Living in Light of the Good News. It’s available here on Amazon.