Humble Roots: How Humility Grounds and Nourishes Your Soul

by Hannah Anderson

As a pastor’s wife, I’m regularly surprised by how people behave around me. For some reason, they often feel the need to project a certain image or to protect me from their brokenness. When they do share the messier parts of their lives, they’re often uncomfortable, almost embarrassed. At first, I took this personally, but then I realized that it is more likely the product of their relationship to the church at large. For many people, the church is a place where they must keep their act together. They must put on a joyful face even when they are overwhelmed. They must have faith even when they doubt. They cannot risk being broken. One of the main reasons we struggle to create safe communities is because we’ve underestimated God’s power in brokenness and end up trusting in ourselves. But when we do, we can never admit failure. We can never admit need. We can never be weak. But it is precisely our brokenness that humbles us, and it is precisely our brokenness that reveals God’s power.