A Bedtime Story

A Bedtime Story

Have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. . . . He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor. Philippians 2:5-9

Nathan has always loved the story of my getting into a debate with my brother-in-law, Loren, the night before my first game as a head coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. We were at a Tampa hotel, and after dinner and team meetings, I went up to the room to go to bed. Loren was downstairs hanging out with some of the coaches and players who were still unwinding after a long day in anticipation of an exciting opening game on Sunday. Loren, of course, was as excited as anyone. When he finally got to the room, he discovered that I was trying to fall asleep on the pullout sofa bed, leaving the bed in the bedroom for him.

The way he tells the story is that he didn’t dare face his sister—my wife, Lauren—in the morning if I had been deprived of a good night’s sleep because of the sleeping arrangements. In his mind, there was no way that could happen with me sleeping on the sofa bed. I told him I was fine and continued to try to fall asleep. But Loren persisted. We debated for a while who should take the bed in the bedroom. Honestly, I was fine sleeping in either place. It never crossed my mind that because I was the head coach, I should have the real bed. Loren was my guest, and I thought he should have the real bed. All I wanted was for us to stop talking and get to sleep. Finally, Loren got the message: he took the bed.

Whether we’re talking about beds, positions, roles, or other things, we need to remember to approach every situation with humility, not with an attitude of entitlement that says, “I’m better than you, so . . .” We don’t need to elevate ourselves; God will elevate us, if that is His will. And I can affirm that an attitude of humility always makes for a good night’s sleep.

Uncommon Key > Examine where you stand on the humility scale. Is there a specific way you can cast aside your status or position today and humble yourself as Christ did?