“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (1Pe 5:5 NIV)

There’s no way around it, brothers! Whoever wants to climb the mountain has to transverse the valley first. Whoever wants to go to Mt. Zion and to the chosen crowd, must first go through the valley of repentance eating humble pie. For God gives grace to the humble. He fetches them out of the deep into his lofty heights. Yes, he might let us see the magnificent peaks – but sometimes he just grants a presentiment of their glorious appearance – no seeing, just believing. He fetches the silent flowers in the valley. He came to serve and with this service lift up the poor and miserable. He casts down the mighty from their throne, but has exalted the lowly. Oh repent of your pride, let us cry over our arrogance and sinful haughtiness. Let us recognize, that we are poor, miserable sinners. Let us pray to God, that he might hear our plea and wash and absolve us from our iniquity and grant us his peace, so that we can serve him according to his calling and as it pleases him. Yes, may God return us to the heartfelt prayer: “I thank you, that you hast humbled me; before you humiliated me, I went astray.”

Merciful God and Father! You oppose the proud, but gives grace to the humble. We plead from the bottom of our heart: Take all impatience and bitterness from us, that we humble ourselves under your mighty hand and patiently follow the paths that you direct us faithfully. Through your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Church book of Saxony)

Christ’s path goes down and in your pride you strive to heavens citadels? Discontent you strive upward? Your savior came down. Whoever wants to be uplifted, must descend with him first.

Therefore my eyes descend! God is looking down from his throne perceiving the lowly. Pride he abhors. The higher up an eye is lifted, the closer its to the grave and deaths dark night. Therefore my eyes descend!

Down, my heart down! God dwells in the poor and lowly. Humility is his spirit and the golden heaven saves up a thousand crowns for those humbled before, but Lord, if I have you, I have enough and am content. Therefore my heart get down. (Andreas Ingolstätter 1633-1711)

This is a translation of Wilhelm Löhe’s devotion for Saturday after Laetare (4th Sunday in Lent). The prayer was translated rather literally and not poetically. Both are found on Pg. 144 in Lob sei Dir ewig, o Jesu!   (Eternal Praise to you o Jesus!) edited by A. Schuster and published in the Freimund Verlag, Neuendettelsau 1949.