Scripture

No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

~Micah 6:8, NLT

Quote

Pride is a sneaky thing. It creeps in unexpected seeking to take us hostage.

~Michael Wolf

I totally agree with Michael Wolf, pride is sneaky and it does creep. Pride is a snake in the grass. Most of the time, we don’t see it until we feel the sting of its fangs. There have been times in my life when I thought I was acting in humility only to find out later that it was pride motivating me, not humility. One of the marks of pride is to boast and it could be related to our faith. Peter said to Jesus, “These others may fall away, yet I will not…Even if I have to die for you, I will not deny you.” Peter had every intention of keeping his promise but his courage melted in the heat of the conflict and he became totally impotent. He had good intentions but his flesh could not make good on his boast. Peter compared himself to others and thought of himself as an exception but Jesus assured him that he would fail and he did. Peter leaned to distrust the flesh and to rely on God’s grace.

Pride can trip us up and cause us to fall. It hurts to fall. I saw and elderly woman fall a few weeks back. She was walking across a parking lot. I think she was wearing heels and her foot turned and down she went. Within seconds, two people showed up and helped her to her feet. I was a hundred feet or so away but I could see the expression on her face and she immediately scanned the crowd to see if anyone was watching. Thank goodness, she was not injured physically but she suffered embarrassment. This is one of many reasons why I hate pride and I’m not talking about your pride, I am talking about mine. It trips me up, causes me embarrassment and sometimes deep humiliation. It can also drive a wedge between ourselves and the LORD because He hates pride. He does not hang out with the proud.

Ben Franklin had thirteen virtues or commandments that he lived by…

There is only one problem, no one can imitate Jesus and only the proud would attempt to do so.  As Ben discovered, humility is the most illusive virtue, just when you think you have it, you don’t, but don’t give up–keep trying. Humble yourself in the sight of the LORD and He will left you up.

Extra

Great weekend that includes a day in the study. It was sprinkling rain when I came to the office PTL. Hard to believe it is September 5, 2023. Two-thirds of 23 are history. LORD willing, we will finish the Psalms on September 20. We may have our fall fish fry on the September 27 which is a Wednesday night and I will start a new series on October 4. We have had a request to get into some apologetics and I am consider leading GP through MERE CHRISTIANITY by C.S. Lewis. I will look at it the next two weeks and see if I can sermonize it; I think I can. I hope you had a great Labor Day. Buckle up, from now to Christmas will fly. Have a great day and thanks for reading the blog.