Chuck Swindoll tells this story: Marian Anderson, the great contralto who won worldwide acclaim, didn’t simply grow great; she grew great simply. In spite of her fame, she remained a beautiful model of humility. A reporter interviewing Miss Anderson once asked her to name the greatest moment in her life. She had had so many big moments to choose from. For example:
There was the night conductor Arturo Toscanini announced, "A voice like hers comes once in a century."
In 1958 she became a U.S. delegate to the United Nations. Then there was that private concert she gave at the White House for the Roosevelts and the king and queen of England. And in 1963 she was awarded the coveted Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Which of those big moments, among many, did she choose? None of them. Miss Anderson quietly told the reporter that the greatest moment of her life was the day she went home and told her mother she wouldn’t have to take in washing anymore.
Who are we thinking of when someone is unlovable to us? Our self. Who does Christ call us to think about? Others. He wants us to take page from His playbook. Hanging on the cross He suffered indignities against His perfect nature, shame, torture, and slow agonizing pain. And His response, “Father forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.”