"Pride" Come DOWN!

We are all familiar with the Proverb "pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling" Proverb 16:18, but what revelation do you get personally when you read or hear this wisdom? For me, it moved a mountain in my life...

Throughout our spiritual journey we hear profound words, scriptures, proverbs and read sacred text that will often times move us to a place of deep thought and introspection. Many times it will instantly evoke change in our lives, but sometimes it will be a process of growth and discovery as we meditate on those seed like words, allowing them to penetrate deep within the soil of our hearts.

Proverbs 16:18 was one of those sacred seeds that was planted in my heart years ago that recently bloomed as a radiant flower of fragrant revelation. The bloom began to sprout during my recent season of transition and relocation with being willing to surrender to the process and walking in total obedience. After passing test after test, the character developing moments seemed to intensify. My true test of growth was revealed by my ability to be transparent about what I was experiencing and being open to receiving correction, instruction and prayer. Then I saw a GREAT movie, The Best Man Holiday and right before my eyes was a tremendous big screen lesson on pride. I strongly recommend that you see it.

You know PRIDE, the word that comes before FALL. Nobody wants to fall, but it's a part of life that we all must encounter when learning to WALK in PURPOSE. The problem with falling is that it's soooooo embarrassing. Why is it embarrassing? Because people laugh; they laugh when your down, they will sometimes kick you when your down just to make matters worse. Why? Because that's human nature, especially among those who have not allowed sacred text and the transformative power of the Holy Spirit to penetrate their hearts. It's even apparent in those who have forgotten what it was like to learn to walk, and those who suffer from a lack of empathy and compassion.

However, for those of us who aspire to greatness, we must always remain compassionate towards others and maintain a level of empathy no matter what. We must also be aware at all times of PRIDE and how it creeps in. For example, it seems that whenever God elevates us to a perceived level of "greatness" or "influence" we seemingly become immune to mistakes, at least in front of others. We are no longer allowed to be human or to have needs. At least we perceive that to be true. This is where pride comes in. Greatness comes with price, process and pitfalls. Your ability to navigate through and around the 3 P's of GREATNESS, REQUIRES your willingness to remain humble, teachable and transparent no matter how high you climb on the ladder of success. The public fall from a 10 foot ladder could be painful and even kill you.

The opposite of PRIDE is HUMILITY. Humility is not only thinking of others more than yourself, but being willing to openly admit your faults and needs; and receive correction, support and instruction with grace. With that being said, in order for the seed of Proverb 16:18 to be nurtured in your life, EMBRACEthe PROCESS of SURRENDER. ALLOW the POWER of THE HOLY SPIRIT to wash your mind and heart daily so that the friction of life's trials produce fruit worth eating.