I am currently enjoying a wonderful book in a Bible Study I am attending titled "Landmines in the Path of the Believer"by Charles F. Stanley.
It has already opened my eyes to areas in my life where sin lurks without being noticed until it blows up in your face. Kind of like B.O. The first study has been on pride.
See, I feel like pride is like an armpit. It's no ones favorite thing to see. Especially on someone else. It's very dark. It doesn't shine a light in your eyes, saying, "look at me I am pride and I am in your life." It is dark and creeps in slowly. When I was working full time for a large corporation, there was a leader who worked closely to me who most would describe as dark. Whenever he entered the area, any harmless chattering would cease, and just an unexplainable darkness set in as shoulders tensed and moods went downward. He led by intimidation, calling someone out loudly in front of others and often starting by stating his title. One day I left my security badge on my desk when I went to lunch. He was going in the door in front of me and when discovered I was without it, he made me walk all the way to the front of the building (it is a very large complex) in the rain to check in with security. He knew who I was, as I saw him everyday. Pride always brings a darkness to not only your life, but to those around you. It can obviously put others down and make them feel inferior but it never brings with it the happiness and glorification that you think it will. At least not for long. My husband knew a leader once who would pull his sports car up to the building sidewalk after lunch and stand outside of it, looking over the parking lot to see who was coming in from lunch and at what time. He thought this display of power and money would glorify himself, but behind his back, everyone would roll there eyes and laugh at his petty attempt for respect.
I used to define pride in my mind as girls in high school who thought that they were just a little too pretty to hang out with just anyone. But in the book, Stanley points out there are some ways the darkness of pride can sneak in that are not so obviously prideful. Actually the definition of pride can be, like an armpit, kind of hairy! It also grows quickly and wild, reaching over into other areas of your life.
Self-promotion
Arrogance
Lack of giving to God and others
Refusal to listen to advice
Lack of submission to authority
A spirit of rebellion
Bragging
Others may not see if at first, but when you raise your arm, and at some point you will, your pride comes crashing down. To me the ole blessing brag is a bit hairy. Are you saying you are blessed for something to glorify God or to glorify self? See, it can be a little hairy.
Pride just plain stinks.
You start out feeling like the hot new thing, but you can only be hot for so long before the odor begins. Others may get a little wiff and think, "Is that her?" but it's not long before everyone knows. You however are often exempt to your own odor, parading along while others duck out of the way. You can only go on this way for so long until you become and outcast because no one can stand your stench.
Thank you Lord for pointing out the dark areas of pride in my life because like an armpit, it's dark, hairy and stinks.
