More thoughts on pride…
Jun 9th, 2010 by ljkim
Many people were raised with the ideas: “have some pride in yourself,” “take pride in your work,” so it’s hard to accept any teaching AGAINST pride. English Christians in the past used to distinguish the bad kind of pride as “overweening pride” or arrogance… So if it helps, you can think of it that way at first. In biblical Christian teaching, pride is the worst sin. It’s very near to Sin itself. It’s our main problem emotionally, relationally, and intellectually.
So isn’t it interesting that every person you meet naturally thinks that they are the smartest, most interesting, most important person in the world? Everyone thinks they are the kindest (even outright mean people think of their meanness as a true kindness), everyone thinks of themselves as “best” even if best means not being on top. This is a helpful lesson if you deal with people all day. The dumbest person (not to be mean, but some one person must be dumbest somewhere) thinks himself right. The dullest most boring person is most interested in himself, his diary or mental diary is filled with details he finds fascinating. This is why people force others to view pictures of their vacations, and their children…to them they are the most interesting creatures in the world. And EVERYBODY thinks this way.
Now we don’t realize it because we’re too busy thinking about ourselves, but it’s fascinating to think that EVERYBODY does this! In everyone’s personal experience – our needs are the most important, our thoughts the ones that matter, our feelings the only feelings in the universe that need to be addressed. People use the expression that someone is “blinded by rage,” but most of the time we’re blinded by this me-ness, this self-absorption, what the Bible calls pride.
Humility then is about looking for the other side: I feel this way, but how does the other feel? I think this, but what is the other person thinking? I want this, but what does the other want? I know what I know, but what it is that I don’t know that this person knows or thinks or feels? Yours is not the ONLY perspective, your thoughts are not the ultimate thoughts, your feelings are not the only ones that matter here – but you know that…in theory.
You know the question we ask from time to time “what do you do different just for God?” This is probably a good place to start. It’s a part of what Jesus calls “losing oneself” – but the happy ending is, far from getting less out of life – you are liable to get much much more.
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