(22) HOLINESS
Final Reflection in the Litany of Humility Series
We’ve all seen it:
The one with the healing ministry.
The prophet with the microphone.
The dream interpreter with a following.
The preacher who commands the room.
And let’s be honest…
Something in us wants that.
To be the one God uses most.
To have the real anointing.
To walk in visible power.
To be known as holy.
But this final petition in the Litany of Humility doesn’t ask for any of that.
It asks something braver.
“That others may become holier than I—
provided that I may become as holy as I should—
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.”
At first glance, it sounds noble.
But let it land.
Can I want others to carry more grace than me?
Can I rejoice when someone else gets the miracle?
Can I cheer when someone else is given the platform?
Can I trust God to make me as holy as I should be—without needing to be holier than anyone else?
That’s not just humility.
That’s freedom.
Because the truth is:
Real holiness has nothing to prove.
It doesn’t seek attention.
It doesn’t crave applause.
It doesn't keep score of spiritual gifts, followers, or signs and wonders.
Real holiness longs to disappear into the will of God.
It wants to see the Kingdom come—no matter who brings it.
It wants Jesus to be glorified… not the vessel.
And yes—this prayer is hard to pray.
It grates against our desire to be special.
To be chosen.
To be the one.
But if God chooses to make someone else holier…
If He pours more grace, more power, more insight into them…
and I’ve been faithful to become as holy as I should be—
then I have everything I need.
And I have reason to rejoice.
Because it’s not a competition.
It never was.
It’s the Kingdom of the Lamb.
Where there are no egos, only offerings.
No rivals, only revelers.
No stage, only sacred ground.
So Jesus—
Make us hungry for true holiness,
Not the spotlight.
Not the status.
Not the spiritual résumé.
Make us as holy as we should be.
And let others shine brighter—
if that’s what brings You joy.
Because when You are glorified,
we all win.
HOLINESS — The Hardest Prayer to Mean
from the Litany of Humility
“That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should...”
Let’s be honest:
This part feels… impossible.
Even dangerous.
Even unwise.
What if others are holier than I, and I just get left behind?
What if they’re holy and happy and heard—
and I’m down here wondering if I’ll ever get my breakthrough?
But here’s the truth:
If I become as holy as I should… that’s everything.
Not as holy as someone else.
Not as holy as I wish I were.
Not as holy as the influencers with spiritual platforms and merch lines and mass followings.
As holy as God desires me to be.
Right here.
Right now.
Fully mine.
Fully His.
This isn’t a prayer of demotion.
It’s a prayer of purification.
We’re not asking to be the last.
We’re asking to be free.
Free of comparison.
Free of spiritual one-upmanship.
Free to bless the ones who shine—without dimming our own light.
Because holiness was never a competition.
And maybe that’s where the real work begins:
Admitting we don’t always want that.
We want to be chosen.
We want to be set apart—but in a way that’s seen.
We want our obedience to get credit.
Our service to be known.
Our spiritual gifts to be acknowledged.
But the Kingdom isn’t built that way.
Holiness is being faithful when no one sees.
Loving when it costs you.
Surrendering your timeline, your spotlight, your rank.
It’s rejoicing in others’ growth—because the whole Body gets stronger.
It’s praising God when He pours out favor somewhere else—because it means He’s moving.
And it’s still asking:
“Lord, make me holy.
Even if no one ever knows.
Even if someone else gets there faster.
Even if the world calls them saint and forgets my name.”
If I was holy enough to want that…
If everyone else was holier than me…
What kind of world would we live in?
A world on fire with grace.
Where jealousy dies and joy multiplies.
Where people outdo one another in showing honor.
Where no one fights for the spotlight—
because everyone shines in the light of Christ.
A world like that?
That’s the Kingdom He came to build.
And we—right here, right now—get to be part of it.
Not by rising to the top,
but by going lower.
Not by being first,
but by serving.
Not by being noticed,
but by being faithful.
And when we choose that kind of holiness—
when we stop clawing and start blessing—
we become the kind of people who help the whole world to heal.
WOW. We’ve Come a Long Way Together
Thank you for walking this very rocky road with us.
You’ve let yourself be cracked open in places most people never touch.
You’ve dared to pray what most dare not admit.
The Litany of Humility isn’t a checklist.
It’s a slow, holy surrender.
It’s saying “yes” to God’s way over yours,
even when it stings.
So keep praying.
Keep watching for where He’s softening your edges.
Keep returning when pride creeps back in.
Pray it daily, if you dare—or as often as your heart whispers for more.
And when you notice a shift—
when envy fades, when peace floods in,
when your joy in others becomes real—
come back and tell us.
We’re walking it too.
And the Kingdom is closer than we think.
Hungry for more?
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