HUMILITY
Today we will start to memorize a new prayer and the topic is Humility OR BEING HUMBLE
- What is Humility?
- How do we know we are being Humble?
- Why should we practice the virtue of Humility?
- When do we practice the virtue of Humility?
When you are humble, you don’t consider yourself more important than other people. You are happy to serve others and think other people’s needs are important.
Humble means doing your best without attracting too much attention to yourself.
1. You are not afraid to ask for help
2. Don’t pay lots of attention to what people say about you GOOD OR BAD
3. Don’t spend energy trying to impress others
4. Don’t worry about mistakes, be eager to learn
Being humble is about taking on an attitude of learning.
Blessed is the spot and the house
Send a Postcard
BE LIKE THE EARTH
See the earth
It’s so humble
Has all God’s wealth to give
Everything we need to live
Lets us walk on it every day
But have you ever heard it say
“I am richer
Greater than you”
See the tree
It’s so humble
The more its fruits abound
It bows closer to the ground
And shares the fruit that way
But have you ever heard it say
“I am richer
Greater than you”
Be like the earth
Be like the tree
Rise to the heaven of glory
On the wings of humility
Rise to the heaven of glory
On the wings of humility
O Son of Man! Humble thyself before Me, that I may graciously visit thee.
THE HIDDEN WORDS OF BAHÁ’U’LLÁH
Put to music HERE.
MEANING OF THE WORD
Humble
Zinab works diligently on her math assignments and always does well. She is humble and never boasts about her achievements.
The children in Yong Fu’s neighborhood are eager to learn, and he was asked to form a small class for them. Even though he has little experience and considers himself unworthy, he puts his trust in God and does his best. He approaches the task with humility.
Memorization aid Download aid here
STORY ON HUMILITY
Humility was one of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s most notable qualities. Many people wanted to give Him great titles, but He only wanted to be called “‘Abdu’l-Bahá”, which means “Servant of the Glory”. His most ardent desire was to serve. One time some wealthy visitors made an elaborate plan for Him to wash His hands before a meal. They arranged for a specially dressed boy to carry a fancy bowl with “crystal water”, and they also had a perfumed towel waiting for Him. When the Master saw the group of friends approaching from across the lawn – with the little boy, the bowl, and the towel – He knew their purpose. He hurriedly found some water nearby, washed His hands, and dried them with a piece of cloth the gardener had. Radiantly, He turned to greet the group. And then, bestowing on His guests, the very honor that was meant for Him, He lovingly offered them water and a perfumed towel!
SCIENCE EXPERIMENT
Humility and Thankfulness attract God’s blessings
“Attract” a stream of water without even touching it.
What to Do
This works best on a dry day.
Set the tap running gently so that it has a steady but thin stream of water coming out. Move an inflated balloon near the stream of water. It should not affect the water at all. Now rub the balloon on your hair.
Now move the balloon near the stream of water. The water will be attracted to the balloon, and the closer you move the balloon, the more the water will bend.
HUMILITY AND THANKFULNESS ARE LIKE THE STATIC ELECTRICITY THAT THE BALLOON GETS FROM BEING RUBBED ON YOUR HAIR AND THIS ATTRACTS THE WATER OR “BLESSINGS”
ANOTHER STORY
Aid for Story: Download here
ANOTHER STORY
Role-Playing
Present children with a series of scenarios where they can choose to be boastful or humble, such as winning a game, getting an A on a test, or giving someone a gift. Have children give a boastful response and a humble response to the scenario. For example, a child could pretend to brag about winning the game to demonstrate boastful behavior and say “good game” to the other players to demonstrate humility. Talk about how everyone involved would feel for each scenario to emphasize why choosing to be humble is the better option.
Games to Illustrate the Virtue of Humility
from The New World Order Games Manual, by Linden Qualls
This game was created for our lesson on humility. I explained that egos and lower selves can become too large and inflated, like a balloon. We need to keep them “under control” and “inline”. So for this game, 2 teams would each be given an equal-sized blown-up balloon. Each team lined up across from the other. The goal was to be the first team to get the balloon down their own line without it hitting the floor or going out of reach. It is hard to control the lower self and the ego, so to make it hard to control the balloon, the team members could only use their heads and feet to maneuver the balloon. Each team member could touch the balloon with their head or feet as many times as needed to get it to the next person. No one is to be skipped. If hands or arms were used, or the balloon hit the floor or went out of reach, it was brought back to the start. The youngest ones can be placed at the very beginning and end of the line, since the first one begins the race and the last one catches it, these are the easiest spots to be in.
Please note that the age and number of the children and the size of the balloon will greatly influence control. The less air, the faster it will fall. Teams should have different colored balloons so they never get mixed up. Encourage the winning 1agamesrules.doc 103 28-Apr-15 team to show humility by not boasting. You can also completely dispense with the race idea, and just make the control of the balloon the only challenge.
Variations:
The same rules apply—if the balloon goes out of reach or hits the ground, it goes back to the beginning.
Team members sat down on the floor and could use their hands and feet. They could slide about in their efforts to control the balloon. (Older groups may be able to use only feet for this version and the one below.)
They then did the same as above but had to be on their backs, with their legs in the air. They could also scoot if necessary.
Team members lay on their stomachs, and could use only their hands. They could slide on their stomachs if needed.
Team members stood in their lines and were allowed to use their hands—but each could only bat the balloon once. No child was to be missed. If this proves too hard, let them hit it twice.
Team members stood up and had to pass the balloon down the line by squeezing it between their stomachs. No hands or feet could be used.
Team members stood up and had to pass the balloon down the line by squeezing it between their knees. No hands or feet could be used.
Spread team members out down the line. Members have to hold balloons between their knees and hop to the next person in line. Or they can hold it between their ankles and hop. You can also try it as a relay race across a distance.
Do the same as above, but no hopping is allowed. Team members must therefore waddle, and it looks really funny. You can also try this one as a relay race across a distance.
Team members sit down (girls with skirts or dresses can’t do this one) in a line, as you would on a toboggan sled. Then kids scoot a little to create some distance from each other and they lay on their backs and put their feet and legs up in the air. I then placed the balloon in between the feet of the first person in line, and the goal is to pass the balloon all the way down the line to the
last person just using the feet. One always passes to the person behind them and they rock on their back (no touching the balloon with hands) and try to place the balloon between the feet of the person behind them. (If you want to continue and go the opposite direction, just have everybody rotate direction, and start with the person who was originally last.)
Students were divided up into groups of 2 or 3. They stood facing each other very close, with arms around each other. The balloon was placed at the bottom of their feet between them, enclosed by their bodies. No hands or forearms were to be used. The goal was to squirm and wiggle it up so that it was between their faces. Taller kids just bent lower at the endpoint. If the balloon escaped, they had to start over.
One day, there were only 3 kids, so we improvised. I also played, to make 4. We spread out and had to get the balloon down the line, then back up again to the first person. There was no race, but keeping the balloon under control was challenging enough.
The ego is the animal in us, the heritage of the flesh which is full of selfish desires. By obeying the laws of God, seeking to live the life laid down in our teachings, and praying and struggling, we can subdue our egos. We call people ‘Saints’ who have achieved the highest degree of mastery over their ego. (From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer, January 8, 1949)
…….the ego can and should be ever-increasingly subordinated to the enlightened soul of man. This is what spiritual progress implies. (From a letter dated 14 December 1941 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer)
Game: “Sometimes I Am Tall”
- One person is blindfolded. Everyone else stands around them in a circle
The people in the circle say together:
- “I am very tall.” (They stand on their toes and stretch as tall as they can.)
- “I am very short.” (They squat down and make themselves as short as they can.)
- “Sometimes I am tall.” (They stretch up again.)
- “Sometimes I am short.” (They squat down again.)
The teacher points up/down and everyone stands/squats. Then everyone says:
- “Guess what we are now!”
The blindfolded child tries to guess by the level of their voice whether they are “short” or “tall”. Each child should take a turn at being blindfolded.
Based on the story A Puppet Show:
Download craft
HUMBLE BRACELETS
Cover empty cardboard toilet paper rolls with decorative paper or fabric to make cute bracelets. First, cut straight across the length of the cardboard roll. Once you’ve made that cut you can cut around the roll making individual bracelets of various widths. Older kids can do this themselves; younger kids will probably need help. Cut paper or fabric rectangles that will cover the bracelet with a small border around each edge. Cover the back of the fabric or paper rectangle with a thin layer of tacky glue and carefully press it onto the bracelet smoothing out any wrinkles. Tuck all the overlaying edges to the underside. If the bracelet has lost some of its ability to spring back into shape roll it into a smaller roll and hold it in shape with a rubber band while the glue dries. For smaller wrists roll them into smaller rounds. If you’ve planned ahead you could invite the kids to bring paper or fabric they like.
Humble Potato Prints
Cut potatoes into thick slices. Outline and cut out the letters H-U-M-I-L-T-Y. Put a thin layer of seven paint colors on seven 7 small plates. Put one letter stamp on each plate. You’ll be using the I stamp twice. Let the children stamp the word HUMILITY onto fingerpaint paper. They can embellish around the word-painting things that remind them of humility. It’s also fun to use cookie cutters and cut out other shape of potato stamps as well. This can get messy so it’s a good outside project. And it’s helpful if there’s a garden hose, or at least a bucket of water, for washing hands.
Based on Prayer Blessed is the spot mini-book
Print the prayer for the children to color.
Print and cut the second section here and fold it on dashed lines like an accordion. glue the prayer images in order. fold up and glue the prayer name “Blessed is the Spot” to the front. ( it is the first section with no image only the words) The last piece can be glued to the notebook or into a small box. You can also attach a string to the accordion book to tie it up.
A COLLAGE based on the song
CUT PICTURES FROM A MAGAZINE AND MAKE A TREE (HUMBLE LIKE THE EARTH)
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