Pride

There are times when pride satiates my carnality like ice cold lemonade on a sweltering summer day. There are other times when pride sickens my spirit to the point that I fear that the dysenterious stench contaminates my every word.

Pride demands its own way. Pride pushes to be at the head of the line. Pride resents anyone who gets more attention that it does. Pride ruins your health, your marriage, and your relationship with your children. Pride balks at criticism and calcifies the heart. Pride is a cancerous, venomous poison that destroys everything holy and pure.

Most anger is rooted in pride. Entitlement, slothfulness, and embezzlement come from pride. Adultery is fueled by pride. Self-love and self-gratification are the byproducts of pride. And abuse is administered on pride’s platform.

But where does pride come from? And why does it taste so sumptuous and sweet at first bite, but then turns putrid and vile once consumed?

The reason is because pride is the foundation of our carnal nature.

I have a missionary friend who has done mighty exploits for the kingdom of God. She has traveled the globe with her husband and seen tens of thousands of people healed and filled with the Holy Ghost. She has, through God’s anointing, confronted witches and cast out demons. Yet despite all of her impressive spiritual demonstrations, she exudes humility. I asked her once how she maintained such self-abnegation.

Her response was simple yet profound.

“Because I know who I really am,” she said.

Oh, to know who we really are! To fully understand that there is nothing good in us. Nothing.

The Lord Jesus himself said there is none good but God. (Luke 18:19)

Yet despite this understanding, many of us still behave like Edmund in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. We want our Turkish Delight, and we want it now. No matter who provides it, or what it does to us.

Beth Moore, in her book Praying God’s Word, devoted a whole chapter to the subject of pride.

“The most effective means the enemy has to keep believers from being full of the Spirit is to keep us full of ourselves,” Moore says. “No wonder the Bible states and restates that God hates pride. It is the enemy of genuine ministry.”

So how do we slay this venomous dragon called pride? I believe there are three core spiritual disciplines that can help keep pride in check.

1. Repent Daily. Hourly if need be. If the Apostle Paul felt the need to die to himself daily, how much more should we? (1 Corinthians 15:31, Galatians 2:1920)
2. Tell Others Of Your Weakness. Using discretion on whom to confide in, make it a habit to confess your pride areas to a trusted and spiritually grounded friend. I once knew a minister’s wife who had a problem with elaborating. Quite often she would call after a conversation to tell me she was sorry for exaggerating a particular story. This habit, although I am sure painful for her at times, kept her honest before God and humble. (James 5:16)
3. Pray The Word of God. The spoken word of God is powerful like a sword cutting down the weeds of pride in our life. Using a tool, like Beth Moore’s Praying God’s Word can be helpful. Or simply, open up the scriptures and start reading them out loud. (Hebrews 4:12)

Wherever you are on the Pride Continuum today my prayer for you comes from Beth Moore’s book, Praying God’s Word:
“Father, your word says you will break down stubborn pride and make the sky above the proud like iron and the ground beneath him like bronze. (Leviticus 26:19) Lord, your word is drawing a vivid picture of the arrogant life. Prayers lifted to heaven will seem to hit a ceiling of iron, and life beneath the feet will be hard. Help me to be humble before you, Lord. The life of the proud will eventually and undoubtedly become very hard.”