Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Pride

Proverb 11:2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.
Proverb 13:10 Pride only  breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.
Proverb 29:23  A man's pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor.

Pride is a problem with which I struggle.  I don't like to be wrong especially when I have studied and prepared for something.  I am sure that I am not the only one like this.  We need to learn to listen to other's suggestions and take them into consideration.  Often we can learn so much from others when we really stop and listen rather than waiting impatiently for them to pause so we can insert our opinions again. Over confidence is a kind of pride if we are not open to other ideas.  Pride can cause us to engage in unnecessary quarrels with someone who disagrees with our plans. Friendships can be hurt because when we quarrel with a friend, they can feel undervalued.  To honor others and show that we respect what they think, we need to give them a chance to be correct and creative. We gain wisdom when we follow God's design for us.  He wants us to obey His  commands and love our neighbors as we love ourselves.  Proverbs of the Bible teach us basic decent values.  Our friends can teach us things, and much more importantly, God's Word will teach us all we need to know about actions and relationships. The most important relationship we can have is with God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Women who are overly concerned about their appearances demonstrate pride.  We want to look not only our best but better than others in the room.  We change our hair, makeup, and clothes because we never seem to be satisfied with ourselves. I probably have twelve tubes of face cream left in my bathroom cabinet because they never seemed to work well enough for me. The cabinets are packed with old hair sprays, mousse, eye shadow etc. I think that it is fine to want to look our best, but we just need to allow our Christian character to be the beauty that stands out the most for us. People will remember the good things that we did or said rather than what we wore or how we looked at some party.

Why is humility so important to God?  That is the greatest character trait of Jesus Christ. He was placed  in a lowly manger at His birth.  The King of Kings began life in the most humble of circumstances.  He would become like the beasts of burden that surrounded Him.  He took on the burdens and sorrows of that day, and He still carries us today when we are in pain.    He humbled Himself and did what His Father asked of Him.  Before the crucifixion,  He could have squashed the Roman soldiers who hurt Him and made fun of Him, but He didn't. He died for us so our sins would be covered with His blood and so we could be with Him through eternity.  While on the cross He even asked God to forgive all those who took part in crucifying Him.  Jesus' way is the opposite of pride; therefore, we know without a doubt that we need to change our ways if we want to emulate Him.



Monday, October 14, 2013

Discipline

Proverb 29:1. A man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed-without remedy.

Philippians 2: 14-15. Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life...

As in previous generations, our generation has depravity.  We are to shine like stars reflecting the glory of Christ.  We are to labor for Him in showing the unbelievers the hope that Christ brings.
Our behavior should emulate that of Christ. We are to do everything without complaining or arguing.
God rebukes us when we get off track.  At times, he burdens us with a conviction that we are living a lie.  When we are disobedient to God, he disciplines us because he loves us. When we are off track, God makes it uncomfortable and disturbing so that our confusion causes problems in our lives with regard to our marriages, our work, our friendships, our self-esteem, and especially our relationships with God. As proverbs says, we must not remain stiff-necked when God allows this discipline. We must learn to recognize that God is leading us to realize our lack of faith and disobedience. This will enable us to make a change so that we may remain blameless and shine for Christ!

This kind of discipline should come from us as parents. We must rebuke our children when they behave in such a manner that is displeasing to God. We must train them to not argue with us. Explain that out of love for them and their futures, we discipline them for their bad behavior.  Discipline must be presented in a manner that best restrains the child.  He/she must not be allowed to bully us parents with their continued complaining and taking charge.  They need to learn self-control and respect for authority.  It is our job as parents to continue the long term fight to be the person in charge who guides our children with loving but firm hands.

See my book, "Proverbs: Wisdom for Daily Living" for more of God's guidance about discipline and other subjects.  Buy it from Amazon or Barnes and Noble as a digital book for $4.99.

Kay Thompson Brown
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