Pride and Where I Find It...

When I was in college, I had a teacher who used to say about pride, “The question we should have is not ‘is there pride in my life?’ but ‘where is it, and how much?’”, then we should seek to rid ourselves of it no matter what it costs us. If I apply that to myself, where do I find pride, the simple answer is everywhere. I find it when I spend too long getting ready in the morning. I find it when I can’t wear something that I don’t think looks fabulous because I have to be seen by other people. I find it every time I am lazy, every time I am less than gracious. It’s a constant stream of me, me, me, me, me, me, and me. It’s a monster!

So what to do about it? It’s not like it was when we were little kids, where you close/cover your eyes in hopes that whatever you don’t like will go away. You cannot escape the reality of sin. Simply covering up your pride issue with some added niceness is like trying to apply cosmetics to an outbreak of poison oak, to cover it up. Unless it is treated properly like the disease that it is, it will spread.

The only antidote strong enough for the poisons we produce is the Bible, the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12 states,

For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Time to increase our exposure, I should think. The word “piercing” is what gets me; it reminds me there is no way of hiding anything. It reminds me of dark mornings during my childhood, when my sister would get up and turn on the main light in our bedroom. Talk about piercing!

Consider also Psalm 119:11,

I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

Looks like the writer of Psalm 119 caught onto something. If God shows you that pride is everywhere in your life, go after it, and show it no mercy. Don’t help it hide. If the Word of God is so important to our spiritual health, what else is there to do? Let’s up our intake, and strive to be rid of this monster of self, no matter what it costs us. The only reason we wouldn't is because of our own pridefulness, and that's the whole point, now, isn't it?

A different language

I used to do my share of swearing. Maybe it was mostly in my own head, but occasionally something would “slip out”. Not a lot, compared to some people, I had a couple girlfriends at my last job that made the stereotypical “sailor” sound like a little kid. Now, you may read this and think, “How sad…” or you may read this and think, “That’s me, too.”

What I have noticed since high school is that a disturbing amount of so-called Christians cling to (or even introduce) forms of offensive language into their talk. I knew people who would talk about God in one conversation, then turn right around and use a deluxe set of four-letter words in the next. Why? Well, maybe because it helps you to blend in. Maybe it is fun for the shock value. Maybe it is because you really do not care about what you do, and your language is a great way to show it. Whatever the reason, if you are a Christian, one thing you should know is that God calls us to a radical standard, one that is so completely different from everyone else, and on purpose!

Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk far from your lips (Proverbs 4:24).

But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. (Colossians 3:8)

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen (Ephesians 4:31).

People who do not care about language show a lot of what they think about God. And since God cares about your language, for you not to care is you showing you don’t care about God every time you swear, whether you “let something slip” or said it on purpose. A changed life exhibits changed speech. It doesn’t matter if somebody made you mad, you stubbed your toe, you dropped your $300 cell phone, or you are trying to make people laugh. This is yet another thing we are to cast off. Watch your mouth, and remember-- Christians speak a different language.

Worthless Things

Last week, I did something I had never done before. No, it wasn’t skydiving, eating swordfish, observing sharks in a cage underwater, camping in the snow, or any other activity that makes little sense to me.

What did I do what was so unusual for me? I went through my iTunes library and deleted about 50+ songs from my hard drive. Considering that a lot of those were bought online, yikes, I might as well have thrown a handful of dollar bills to the wind.

As those closest to me know, I recently became a Christian. And yeah, I know, how many times can a person “get saved” before it is legit, right? I’ve wondered that myself throughout my life, what an irony that I was one such case. I came to realize, wow. These things that characterize a Christian, that define a person who follows after God in holiness…these things are nowhere to be found in my life. All I showed was a clever imitation. But God changed my heart much, and brought me to repentance. Now, I know that what results from repentance and a change in heart is a change in my lifestyle, reflecting this. There should be no doubt Who I belong to.

Any music that could be labeled “questionable” got deleted. Ciara, Rihanna, Usher, Maroon 5, Linkin Park, Nickelback, Christina Aguilera, and yes, even the infamous Justin Timberlake, to name just a few.

I was reminded earlier today of a message I heard at church a few weeks back, in which my brother-in-law, Bobby, brought up Psalm 119. I have started reading this Psalm, by the way, and wow. I want to learn to live like that! Verse 37 states (in the NIV and NASB versions combined),

“Turn my eyes away from worthless things, and revive me according to your ways.”

And remembering what Bobby talked about, keeping that music I had, well, it could easily be characterized as “worthless”. All it talks about is how to “get it”, how to “keep it”, and how to get back at whoever hurt you when you when something goes wrong. Looking back at it, those songs are all so lame! I encourage you, if you need to clean out your music, or any media, for that matter, do it. If something in your life can be characterized as spiritually worthless, what good will it do you to hold on to it? Let it go, and focus on all that matters, all that satisfies. Be revived, and be obedient. Otherwise life is nothing more than a clever imitation of what it could be.

Cheating...more common than you think

When cheating comes to mind, what does it make you think of?

School, most likely, being swindled, or some bad boyfriend/ girlfriend experiences are generally what will come to mind along with the word. Some definitions may include: gaining something by dishonesty, unfaithfulness, or just violating any set of rules.

Here’s another side to it­--what about people who simply lack patience? Impatience is one of the key elements that lead to cheating. Let me give you a few examples:

1. Relationships that reap the results of “taking it too far”. The idea that cheating isn’t cheating until after one of the people involved go to someone else is false! Cheating is cheating the second you went too far in your mind. You lusted after something you couldn’t have, this is cheating.
2. Debt because you “had to have” whatever you’d seen, so of course you bought it. I’ve heard credit card debt stories that made me cringe. Spending money you don't have is bad. Spending money you do not have and do not even need to spend, is worse.
3. Debt because you “had” to go to an expensive school. And many people hold tight to it, even if a cheaper school would have been as good if not better. Regardless of how high in esteem this school is held, is it really worth your full salary for 4 years past school?
4. Car payments up to your eyes because either you were not willing to wait until you could afford a car that expensive, or you would not accept a cheaper alternative because it might hurt your pride.

Any of these sound familiar? If so, I hope you learned. Cheating is a direct result of selfishness, and is something that has no place in the life of a believer. Patience is one of the fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and should be exemplified by those who are imitating Christ. To “cheat” by grabbing at what you think you need/want shows that your soul is not satisfied in Him, it shows He is not Lord of your life. What is so important to understand is that the sin doesn’t begin in doing it. Even in our examples mentioned above, to even think about considering cheating in school, etc… is sin. It all begins in the heart, which, in turn, sends it straight to the mind. The second you entertain a thought of something you cannot/should not have, with the intent of acting on it, you are wrong. Just like a kid who sneaks a peek at the test of the kid next to him because he didn’t study. Just like the homeless guy who had so much and lost it all because he gambled it all away, thinking he could get more. You pay for it in the end, even if it seems like you got by.

Sobering thoughts for me, because so much of this goes on, if not in my own life than in someone’s close to me. There is no substitute for living in godly obedience, and working hard for what you have, even if it is not what you’d have liked. When God blesses you, it is with whatever He believes is right for you. Maybe it is a lesser version of whatever think you want. Maybe He blesses you with this amazing ability to work for it. In any case, let’s celebrate all He has given us, and not try to cheat through life. How could we ever be fulfilled that way? Thank God He knows what is best!

Reflections

This past week I was reading in All Things for Good by Thomas Watson. Something that really stood out to me was the following:

"Water in the glass looks clear, but set it on fire, and the scum boils up."
"...'Oh,' says a Christian, 'I never thought I had such a bad heart, as now I see I have; I never thought my corruptions had been so strong, and my graces so weak.'"

This has proven much true in my own life, there's been many a time as of late when I have thought, "yikes, is this really how I am...did that really come out of me?" only to realize that not only was it me that was like that, but the very things that horrified me so badly were really only the tip of the iceberg.

Living a blameless life was never really something I thought I had a problem with. Which is a problem in and of itself! My own pride was blatantly obvious... Thank God for revealing existing impurity day by day and not just expecting righteous living, but making it possible. My encouragement to my readers is, find out just how possible! Learn and grow, and never visit your old life. It's dead and buried in that graveyard, and it has no control over you.

Now that is something to give thanks for.

So thankful

As tomorrow is Thanksgiving, it's set me thinking, what am I thankful for?

1. This amazing God we serve, and the chance to serve Him.
2. My loving family; I am so thankful for their challenges, encouragement, and support. They never shy from honesty, they tell it like it is, and that is a quality I really appreciate about them.
3. My friends, for not being "yes men" (women).
4. My job (if I was ever to even think of complaining, one quick trip to a local Home Depot is the cure).
5. Good health, for obvious reasons.
6. A reliable car...thank God for that, last year I was convinced the seller had pulled one over on me. Seems he didn't.
7. Whatever the future holds.

Here's to growth in Christ. It is my prayer I will decrease, in order that He may increase...and become the everything in my life. Without Him, I really am nothing. <><