Have you ever been blind sided by the LORD? I mean totally set up and caught off guard?
Recently that happened to me.
I can’t remember why, but I was looking for a particular book I knew I had. I never found it but another one really stood out to me.
Some people might call that a coincidence. I call it a Holy Spirit set up!
The book the Holy Spirit lit up to me was all about brokenness and pride.
“UGGGHHH! Pride!!! I can’t possibly have pride in me Lord! Trust me, I’ve been broken!! I don’t need to read this! Why do you want to talk about this?” These were the thoughts running through my head.
Never the less, I started reading.
Little did I know the next couple of days would be spent weeping and repenting before the LORD. It wasn’t fun to have the LORD put HIS mirror in front of my face and show me all the spots and wrinkles. I’m ever so grateful now that in HIS love and mercy HE brought much needed correction. HE’s a good Father. Good fathers correct their children.
You may be like I was and think this topic is a waste of time. I hope you won’t shoot the messenger and run away. Stick with me to the end and maybe you’ll find out you truly don’t have any spots or wrinkles (fingers crossed for you). 🙂
As I searched the bible these were just a few scriptures that speak of pride and the consequences of it. Turns out there are a lot more!
Proverbs 16:18(NLT) Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall.
Proverbs 11:2(NLT) Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.
Proverbs 29:23(NKJV) A man’s pride will bring him low, But the humble in spirit will retain honor.
Matthew 23:12(NKJV) And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.
1Peter 5:6(NKJV) Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time
This may be an over simplified understanding of the scriptures above but what I get from them is… “Get your own mirror out and look at it really hard! If you think you are all that and a bag of chips, you might want to look again. Humble yourself or GOD will “allow” you to eat some humble pie a.k.a. “crow”. ”
I don’t know anyone who likes crow. :0
What is the definition of pride?
PRIDE
- A sense of one’s own proper dignity or value; self-respect.
- Pleasure or satisfaction taken in an achievement, possession, or association.
- Arrogant or disdainful conduct or treatment; haughtiness.
Ok, so #1 doesn’t seem so bad, right? Listen, I’m not suggesting in any way, shape, or form we shouldn’t be proud of who we are and have value and self-respect. After all, we are Children of the King of Kings! That is something we should be proud of but, most importantly, grateful for. Thankful to JESUS for dying on the cross for our sins and saving us from the pit of hell. We had nothing to do with what HE did except GOD loved us so much (John 3:16). We just accepted HIM as our LORD & SAVIOR (By the way, if you have not done that please, please, please click on the Show Me tab at the very bottom of this page).
#2 isn’t terrible either, right? We can be proud of accomplishments, things we own, or people we know (ie…our children, friends, business associates). We can keep pride out of this area by acknowledging and giving GOD Glory for our talents HE gave us that let us accomplish great things, possessions HE provided for us and the people HE’s placed in our lives.
#3 is where we can start to see what the scriptures are talking about. Here are just a few examples of pride… “Look how I pulled off that great business deal, I’m so beautiful/hot, I’m a self – made fill in the blank. I’m better than so & so because I don’t drink or cuss. I go to church way more than her/him. Who do they think they are!? I’m soooo important in the community, at work, at church. I don’t know what they’d do without me! Well, if the pastor, my boss, my spouse would just do it this way. I can’t believe he got that promotion over me! Why didn’t they point out my part in that show we put on!!? I don’t need any one to pray for me, I can pray for myself! I demand that you wait on me now! Get out of my way you moron, you’re driving too slow! Nobody can find out about that, what will they think of me?!! I will not apologize to her, she was in the wrong not me! I can quote so many scriptures, I don’t need a fresh touch from the LORD! I’m not going to open up to them because I might get hurt. I think the LORD told me to do this but I’m not sure it was really HIM so I’ll just ignore it. It was probably me anyway. He has so much more talent than I do, I can never do it as well. What is wrong with these kids today? “
I could go on and on but I’m sure you get the picture.
The LORD dealt with me specifically in the areas of independence and self-reliance. Honestly, I never knew this was pride. I just thought it was a good thing because I take care of my self and am responsible. I’m the oldest of 3 children. The birth order, I believe, is a real thing. The oldest tend to be independent. The middle ones are the troublemakers or attention seekers. The youngest are usually the least responsible or maybe even late bloomers.
GOD showed me how I depended more on me than on HIM. HE told me I should come to HIM for everything. HE wants to be intimately involved in every area of my life. HE loves me (and you) that much. HE also showed me that even though it’s good to pray for yourself, sometimes you need other people to pray for you too. So, guess what? The following Sunday, a dear lady at our church confessed that she hadn’t been obedient to come forward and pray for people like the LORD was asking her to (A form of pride I’m also guilty of). She said specifically HE wanted to heal people with pain in their back. Well, I rationalized every way I could in my head that this wasn’t possibly for me. I wasn’t really in any pain at the moment. I had slipped a disc in my lower back several years earlier that was always hindering me from doing normal things. It’s something I was always conscious and careful of but wasn’t really a problem at the moment. The Holy Spirit kept nudging me in that still, quiet voice. The lesson of self-reliance was fresh in my spirit. Finally I relented to the prodding and I walked to the front. Another beautiful sister in Christ joined the first lady and they prayed for my lower back. Almost immediately I felt heat and tingling and I knew that HE was healing me. If I had sat there and let my pride win I would’ve missed out on that blessing. It’s been a few weeks since they prayed and my back feels good as new. I’m able to do things I haven’t done in years. GOD is amazing!!
Lesson learned. I thought I was done with the topic of pride. Then GOD downloaded revelation that can only come from HIM.
HE gave me a much simpler definition of pride.
PRIDE = SELF-DECEPTION
The bible says in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 “Let no one deceive you by any means;”
That means even yourself.
Satan deceived himself and he was cast out of Heaven.
12 “You were the seal of perfection,
Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You were in Eden, the garden of God;
Every precious stone was your covering:
The sardius, topaz, and diamond,
Beryl, onyx, and jasper,
Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold.
The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes
Was prepared for you on the day you were created.
14 “You were the anointed cherub who covers;
I established you;
You were on the holy mountain of God;
You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones.
15 You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created,
Till iniquity was found in you.
16 “By the abundance of your trading You became filled with violence within,
And you sinned;
Therefore I cast you as a profane thing
Out of the mountain of God;
And I destroyed you, O covering cherub,
From the midst of the fiery stones.
17 “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty;
You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor;
I cast you to the ground,
I laid you before kings,
That they might gaze at you.
18 “You defiled your sanctuaries
By the multitude of your iniquities,
By the iniquity of your trading;
Therefore I brought fire from your midst;
It devoured you,
And I turned you to ashes upon the earth
In the sight of all who saw you.
19 All who knew you among the peoples are astonished at you;
You have become a horror,
And shall be no more forever.” ’ ”
The bible says in John 10:10 NKJV ” The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.“
He (Satan) is also known as the father of lies. Would it be a stretch to say he is the father of pride which from GOD’S definition is self-deception? Self-deception is a lie from the pit of hell. If the devil can get you to believe lies about yourself he can control you. He can high-jack your destiny, your calling, your purpose. The LORD highlighted to me that in the world’s system June is celebrated as Pride Month. Think about that, a whole month of celebrating self-deception. A whole month of celebrating a lie from the father of lies. A whole month of celebrating confusion from the enemy. How many precious people, whom the LORD loves dearly, are being kept from a life of freedom in HIM? How many are being kept from their destinies and Kingdom callings and purposes?
The LORD further revealed that pride is the root of division. How much division do we have around the world? Rich vs. poor, old vs. young, liberal vs. conservative, pro 2nd amendment vs. gun control, pro-life vs. pro-abortion, gay vs. straight, black vs. white, Christian vs. Muslim. It goes on and on. Can we not see it’s a tool of the enemy? If we come together, just as people that GOD created, how much we could accomplish!
Luke 11:17 AMPC But He, well aware of their thoughts and purpose, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is doomed to destruction; and a house divided against itself falls.
Pride controls the political systems around the world. It’s also known as the Jezebel spirit. It is a spirit of deception, power, control, and manipulation. It’s exactly what is going on in today’s world.
Psalm 10:2 NKJV
2 The wicked in his pride persecutes the poor;
Let them be caught in the plots which they have devised. 3 For the wicked boasts of his heart’s desire;
He blesses the greedy and renounces the Lord. 4 The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God;
God is in none of his thoughts.
We have to keep in mind we don’t battle people but we battle spirits. Fallen angels we, as Christians – followers of Christ, have authority over.
Ephesians 6:12 NLT “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.“
I hope you are starting to see how vitally important it is to be honest with ourselves and each other. Do we have any hope? Of course! The LORD does not leave us helpless or hopeless!!
Luke 10:19 NKJV Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Psalm 37:40 And the LORD shall help them, and deliver them: he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in him.
The LORD is calling us to rule and reign. We must start with ourselves. We must desire personal deliverance and revival. As we are revived and set free, one by one, we will grow in unity as the Ekklesia – the body of Christ. We will rise up in our authority and spread the love of our savior, JESUS, across the globe.
Join me and get your own mirror out. Examine yourself. Get quiet before the LORD and ask HIM to reveal any areas of pride in you. Let HIM correct you and set you free. I invite you to pray this prayer and wait upon the LORD.