Father Chas Canoy
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Humility isn’t thinking less of yourself; true humility is looking beyond yourself
A reflection on spiritual blindness, humility, and overcoming pride. Discover how the simple prayer “Empty me, Fill me, Use me” can help us turn away from self-centeredness and live more fully in Christ.
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Guess what, folks? We need to realize something very important: we are born spiritually blind. Because of original sin, a kind of murky haze has been cast over our spiritual sight, and only God can heal that blindness.
This is why the virtue of humility is so important. Humility is the virtue that fights directly against pride, and pride is what blinds us and keeps us living in spiritual darkness.
So how do we battle against the pride that lives in every one of us?
The first step is recognizing that pride shows up in all of us. None of us are immune. Scripture tells us: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves.”
We won’t truly discover who we are until we begin to give ourselves away. That is who we were created to be.
We are meant to be givers.
Our God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—is an eternal communion of giving. Within the Trinity there is a constant exchange of love, an eternal self-gift. And we are made in the image of that God.
So if we spend our lives focused only on ourselves, we will never find who we truly are.
Humility isn’t simply about thinking less of yourself. Rather, it is about looking beyond yourself. It means seeing others the way Christ sees them. It means lifting them up, building them up, and focusing more on their needs than on your own.
Look out for each other, not just for yourself.
When you feel that instinct rise up—the urge to push for what you want, to chase comfort, to put yourself first—pause for a moment. Take a step back and ask a different question:
What does the person in front of me need?
What would serve them?
How can I give instead of grasp?
Let go of the little things that feel so urgent for yourself. Sacrifice the habit of putting your own wants first. Turn outward again and again. Choose again and again to serve others.
Choose them, not you.
And to help us live that out, Wahlberg shared a simple prayer from Mother Olga that we can repeat throughout the day—quietly, under our breath, as a constant turning of our hearts back to God.
The prayer is very simple:
“Empty me, fill me, use me.”
Empty me of my selfishness.
Empty me of my self-absorption.
Fill me with the life of Christ.
Fill me with the virtues that He desires to grow within me.
So that it is no longer I who live, but Christ living in me.
And then, Lord—use me.
Use me to reach others.
Use me to bring people closer to You.
So we pray:
Empty me.
Fill me.
Use me.
Empty me.
Fill me.
Use me.
One last time:
Empty me.
Fill me.
Use me.
Amen.