do you ever have one of those moments where your eyes are opened up so wide that you just want to shut them and not be blinded by the bright light we call "ignorance of self?" well that happened to me today. a dear friend of mine help show me (in a very sincere and unassuming way) that i struggle with a sin that i didn't even know i struggled with.
pride. not like white pride or black pride or proud to be an american sort of pride. but the that's-great-sorry-to-hear-you-have-issues-but-let-me-tell-you-what's-going-on-in-my-life sort of pride. pride, in biblical terms, is when glory has been robbed from God and selfishly hoarded by ourselves! yeah, ouch!
let's think about this, perhaps you've said these phrases a few times:
* "i'm not as bad as somebody else"
* "i do more than somebody else"
* "i've been through more than somebody else"
* "i go to church/help at church a lot"
* "i volunteer"
* "i read my bible everyday"
* "i'm not as good as somebody else"
* "my life isn't worth living"
* "my problems are so big that nobody can help me"
* and the list can go on and on!
sure, some of these are not prideful things. but in context, are we glorifying God or are we looking for recognition from others. do we go to church for God? or because that's what we do as christians? do we volunteer to glorify God? or do we do it to improve a resume? or to feel good about ourselves?
the point is, whether in depressive stages of our lives or happy times, are we focused on what we are doing or what God is doing?
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How ironic that you wrote this! I have been studying this myself because I've realized how badly I need to work on this! Here is a quote I found in a talk by President Ezra Taft Benson just last week on the subject:
ReplyDelete"The proud make every man their adversary by pitting their intellects, opinions, works, wealth, talents, or any other worldly measuring device against others. In the words of C. S. Lewis: “Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. … It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition has gone, pride has gone.” (Mere Christianity, New York: Macmillan, 1952, pp. 109–10.)"
He also said, "Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart, or core, is still missing.
The central feature of pride is enmity—enmity toward God and enmity toward our fellowmen. Enmity means “hatred toward, hostility to, or a state of opposition.” It is the power by which Satan wishes to reign over us."
I think it's something everyone has to work on constantly.
Hey JP - been praying for you guys!
ReplyDeleteCarrie sent me the links for your new/old sites. Like what I see! Thought I'd jump right in:
There's an evident joy in the lives of people who have God in their lives. Still, one man's joy is another's misery. In a sad attempt to satisfy our own pride it's easy to write off someone's passion as false. There certainly are showboaters out there, but either way we should support them through forgiveness, prayer and community.