Old Testament Humility

If you asked me who two of the more humble people in the Old Testament were I would most likely respond with Job for #1. Here's a guy who has everything in the world but doesn't seem to acknowledge it. He stays even keel on a path toward a personal relationship with God. My second choice may not be a popular one but it's a great one, Habakkuk. Hab as I will refer to him is a great example of how our suffering and response to hard times molds us into humble people.
Think about the last time you thought you were really suffering, you were in a state of Chicken Little where it seemed as though the sky was faling on you. Your whole world seemed to be crashing in around you. Are you there? I am, I have no problem flashing back not so long ago to a time when these feelings overwhelmed me.
Let's take a look at Hab and his world changing suffering that he encountered. In the first chapter he seems to be somewhat whining to God. In Habakkuk 1:2 He says, "Oh Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and You not hear me? Be honest, you've felt this way haven't you. I think everyone at some point has had a cry on their heart that overtook their prayer life and impatiently expected results right then. Habakkuk is there, but he seems to stop after this prayer. He decides that it is in God's hands and he passes it on to Him. He waits, quietly knowing that the Babylonians are about to destroy them, still he waits quietly for the Lord.
God tells him that they are going to lose everything they have, yet Habakkuk's response in chapter 3 will blow your mind!
Chapter 3:17-18 say, "Though the fit tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold adn there be no herds in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in my salvation."
Their whole being, their food, their resources, their livestock, everything is about to be destroyed by the Babylonians and he says what? Yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in my salvation. Wow!
What is it that I use to humble myself when I think I am suffering too much? I would hope it's the place that you put yourself when things are crashing in and a pity party is on the horizon. The cross!
You see if you put yourself at the foot of the cross, and truly acknowledge and feel the way it takes away all of your pride and entitledness you will be truly humbled. Why am I so moved by Job and Habakkuk? They can't do that. They don't have the illustration and the experience that we do in the Cross. They can only glory in God and His promises, no Jesus to this point, no sinless example of life lived to God's Glory, no cross, no resurrection and yet they humble themselves in understanding what they deserve. That says a lot, if we can't humble ourselves with the example of Christ's life and death then we certainly can't put ourselves in a league with these 2 guys Job and Habakkuk. Hab doesn't only rejoice in the suffering, he's doing it with a promise from God that more is coming.
Do you remember suffering like we talked about earlier? Do you recall a time when things were bad and you knew they would get worse? How did you handle it? Did you take joy in God's promises? Did you put yourself at the foot of the cross?