It's Become a Pride Thing
Greetings sisters in Christ!
I'm sure you all have your struggles in the area of pride and if you've been walking any amount of time, you've already killed a good majority of it and are working on conquering the rest. Today I'm going to share about how we can have pride rise up that we didn't even know was lurking in darkness of our flesh and how we can either pluck it out or overpower it.
We bought some sun shades for the windows of our van, you know the kind you fold out and flip the visor down and it keeps the sun from shining in the windows or people from peeking in (if you live in your vehicle like we do.) Well, these are not the folding kind, they are the ones that are a big rectangle and if you are blessed to have the skill, you can fold them down into a circle and put them away. When we first got them, I'd figured out out and it was sort of fun, but the next day I couldn't fold but only one. The other 3 were beginning to make me mad and after struggling for 20 minutes on them, I decided to pluck them out. (Matthew 5) I took a breath and worked hard at killing my prideful flesh and had admit that I couldn't do it.
When brother Jim got back to the van, I told him my story and said 'I was determined to get them but I couldn't so I plucked them out and stopped trying. They're laying on the bed and we don't need to fold them every day anyway.'
He said 'Let me try.' So I gave him one and he struggled with it and got the first one. My flesh rose up and I said 'Oh, now I want to try it again to prove I can do it too, but I'm not going to.'
He kept trying and trying and after a while he said 'Now it's become a pride thing'.
(He did end up getting them folded and as I type this, I looked online to see if there's something that shows how to do it and found this...)
Now that we have instructions I can't wait to try them again tonight when we get to our parking spot.
This all made me think about how we can have sins lurking in the shadows of our life, waiting to pop out when we least expect it and while we're in the heat of the moment, they rear up, full force, and it's hard to control once it's been set loose.
That happens in marital arguments. In such situations your pride rises up and helps inflame the other side in defense of yourself, when you really should be seeking to be the peacemaker. (In situations where the outcome doesn't really matter as much as you think it should.)
This can happen when people accuse us believers of being unloving, judgmental, legalists etc. It hurts the flesh to receive such lies and sometimes makes you angry, but we need to follow our Saviors example in Isaiah 53...He opened not His mouth. I want to post the entire chapter here because it's one of my favorites.
There were many times that Jesus didn't say anything when He could have. Silence can be powerful and all us sisters could probably use more of it in our life. When we're out witnessing and men come up to confront brother Jim, many of them get frustrated when they can't answer to God's Word and toward the end they look at me and try to either engage me or say "Can't she say anything?"
My silence is power to my husband. I'm not talking over him, not distracting the conversation, not engaging other men....I'm silent as God's Word says. It's part of the meekness in the spirit of a woman, with meekness being power under control and the control is being quiet, which can kill a lot of pride.
When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.
Proverbs 11:2
If you have areas that invoke hidden pride, pluck them out for the glory of God. If you can't master an area, then let another area overpower it, such as a meek and quiet spirit.
(Edited to add that I tried following the instructions and it still didn't work so I gave up:-)
(Edited again....I figured out how to do it. Yay!)
Have a joyous evening sisters.
Love in Christ,
Sister Deb
I'm sure you all have your struggles in the area of pride and if you've been walking any amount of time, you've already killed a good majority of it and are working on conquering the rest. Today I'm going to share about how we can have pride rise up that we didn't even know was lurking in darkness of our flesh and how we can either pluck it out or overpower it.
We bought some sun shades for the windows of our van, you know the kind you fold out and flip the visor down and it keeps the sun from shining in the windows or people from peeking in (if you live in your vehicle like we do.) Well, these are not the folding kind, they are the ones that are a big rectangle and if you are blessed to have the skill, you can fold them down into a circle and put them away. When we first got them, I'd figured out out and it was sort of fun, but the next day I couldn't fold but only one. The other 3 were beginning to make me mad and after struggling for 20 minutes on them, I decided to pluck them out. (Matthew 5) I took a breath and worked hard at killing my prideful flesh and had admit that I couldn't do it.
When brother Jim got back to the van, I told him my story and said 'I was determined to get them but I couldn't so I plucked them out and stopped trying. They're laying on the bed and we don't need to fold them every day anyway.'
He said 'Let me try.' So I gave him one and he struggled with it and got the first one. My flesh rose up and I said 'Oh, now I want to try it again to prove I can do it too, but I'm not going to.'
He kept trying and trying and after a while he said 'Now it's become a pride thing'.
(He did end up getting them folded and as I type this, I looked online to see if there's something that shows how to do it and found this...)
Now that we have instructions I can't wait to try them again tonight when we get to our parking spot.
This all made me think about how we can have sins lurking in the shadows of our life, waiting to pop out when we least expect it and while we're in the heat of the moment, they rear up, full force, and it's hard to control once it's been set loose.
That happens in marital arguments. In such situations your pride rises up and helps inflame the other side in defense of yourself, when you really should be seeking to be the peacemaker. (In situations where the outcome doesn't really matter as much as you think it should.)
This can happen when people accuse us believers of being unloving, judgmental, legalists etc. It hurts the flesh to receive such lies and sometimes makes you angry, but we need to follow our Saviors example in Isaiah 53...He opened not His mouth. I want to post the entire chapter here because it's one of my favorites.
1Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?
2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Isaiah 53There were many times that Jesus didn't say anything when He could have. Silence can be powerful and all us sisters could probably use more of it in our life. When we're out witnessing and men come up to confront brother Jim, many of them get frustrated when they can't answer to God's Word and toward the end they look at me and try to either engage me or say "Can't she say anything?"
My silence is power to my husband. I'm not talking over him, not distracting the conversation, not engaging other men....I'm silent as God's Word says. It's part of the meekness in the spirit of a woman, with meekness being power under control and the control is being quiet, which can kill a lot of pride.
When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.
Proverbs 11:2
If you have areas that invoke hidden pride, pluck them out for the glory of God. If you can't master an area, then let another area overpower it, such as a meek and quiet spirit.
(Edited to add that I tried following the instructions and it still didn't work so I gave up:-)
(Edited again....I figured out how to do it. Yay!)
Love in Christ,
Sister Deb
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