Pride is a very sneaky sin. It oftentimes creeps into your life unnoticed. Before you even realize it you see yourself as better than other people: you're smarter because you had more education, you're more powerful because of your high rank on the job, you're richer because the size of your house and bank account. The stealthiness of pride works in such a way that before you realize it you are telling other people how to live their lives and what to do. You say that your intentions are good, that you are just trying to help the other guy out, but deep down inside you puff out your chest because you think you know better than anyone else.
I have never seen myself as a prideful person...until recently. I'm the quiet, reserved guy that you don't hear much from. I normally keep my mouth shut unless I have something important and pertinent to say. But I, too, have fallen into the sly trap of pride. I don't see myself as smarter than others. I'm not more powerful, and I'm certainly not richer. The prideful trap I have fallen into is spiritual pride. Yep, I see myself, not necessarily as being holier than others, but knowing more about my faith and how to live it out. It's an easy trap to fall into, so it seems, in the line of work I'm in. I'm a youth minister and my job is teaching the teens about their faith and how to live it out. However, I don't see myself as prideful when I'm with them. Where I see my spiritual pride coming out is when I'm interacting with my adult family and friends. I tell myself that I am reaching out to them, to help them in their journey, but deep down I feel a sense of pride in that I think I know more than they do when it comes to following Christ.
I have become aware of this sin of pride in my life just recently. And now that I am aware of it, I need to form a plan of action with the opposite virtue--humility. I need to open my mouth only when it is a sincere attempt to help another out, and keep it shut when my motivations are to bring attention to myself and my so-called "spiritual wisdom". I need to ask myself, "Is what I am about to say going to give more to the other, or to me?" If what I want to say is going to give more to me, then I need to keep quiet.
Do you struggle with pride? Maybe it's not spiritual pride you struggle with. Maybe you struggle with some other form of pride. It's an easy trap to fall into. Counteract that pride with deliberate humility. Give of yourself with no expectation to receive anything in return. Don't just give until you feel better about yourself, because that leads to pride. Give completely. Give until it hurts. It is only then that we can become humble. For as Peter says in his first letter: "'God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble.' So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time." (1 Peter 5:5-6)
5 comments:
Pride is a quirky sin, Eve in the garden allowed herself to fall victim to pride. It is very hedonistic making one feel that they are the center of the universe rather than God. I have sat in church before and felt like I was the holiest person there... then after thinking about it I realize how fallen I am. Pride is a self-destructive sin, it forces us to segregate ourselves because we are superior to those around us that God has put in our lives to help us. I understand when you say pride is a sly sin, I sometimes find myself asking why am I helping... is it for me, driven by satan or God. Doing an honest search of my life pin pointing problems with relationships and prayer time has been my most sucessful way to keep my humility in check. I don't want anyone to place me on a pillar, and I jump off when I realize that I am putting myself up. The part I wanted to add to your blog is real humility will hurt; it is like being crucified with Christ, unmasking the weak spots in your job, friendships, marriage, etc; but like the crucifixion, the joy of the resurrection will come. Christ emptied Himself taking the form of a slave, when I feel most prideful I share my short comings with my close friends, spouse, or family. I experience the pain of admitting I'm not God, but I have the joy of freeing myself from the illusions and lies that pride create; allowing me to live for truth like Christ. Then I am really able to move forward in my spiritual journey, I never want my faults to create an avatar, if you will, that people will see as my perfect life... I want to be happy everyday enjoying my life not worried about what people think or what I have to project as the perfect life. I get real help by my peers who God has placed in my life, sometimes it may hurt, but it always helps
Nope, nope, nope, can't say I get your point. Pride's not one of the sins I suffer from. In fact, you could say I'm very proud of my lack of pride . . . arrrrggggghhhh.
And you're right, the devil is a right sly t*rd about it too - no sooner do you recognize the sin of pride and do something about it, say by serving a fellow Christian in some selfless way, than the thought pops into your head: gee, look at how good I am, helping out this poor chap - - wait, wait, am I proud of my humility?
Good luck. I don't know that I know any answers, but I am pretty sure it has something to do with love: really truly, deeply accepting that anything good we do is because of God's love for us and His grace and that we are to serve each other, not because one of us is worse off than the other and needs service, but simply because out of love, regardless of where I or you are.
I read a few years back that JPII went to confession daily, and I wondered, what did he have to confess. But I also wonder, what kind of person would I be if I was waited on hand and foot, if my every need was not only answered, but anticipated, if millions of people thronged to hear me speak? Personally, I'd need a lot more than a few beatings with a belt and daily confession to keep pride at bay.
Give until it hurts, past the point where it feels good - Wow. What a challenge, but what good advice!
"I need to form a plan of action with the opposite virtue--humility. I need to open my mouth only when it is a sincere attempt to help another out, and keep it shut when my motivations are to bring attention to myself and my so-called "spiritual wisdom". I need to ask myself, "Is what I am about to say going to give more to the other, or to me?" If what I want to say is going to give more to me, then I need to keep quiet."
This is very true for me. I have a very high opinion of myself, even though I don't really have much reason, except "I'm not like those other people" who make such poor choices or are so much less informed, etc...
I do find that I can see myself better by examining my life as how someone else would see me. When I do that I see I'm just an ordinary person with very average accomplishments, etc. I'm sure it would be a much more powerful examination by looking at how God would look at me. That is actually pretty frightening.
What I would like to know is, when you catch prideful thoughts and try to push them away is that enough? Will you always have them, or can you only consider yourself conquering this problem if you don't have those thoughts at all?
Catching yourself with prideful thoughts in itself is not sinful. We cannot control the thoughts that come into our minds. What we can control, however, is what we do with those thoughts. If we dwell on and relish those sinful thoughts or take action based on them, then we cross the line into sin.
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