Gosh, I just realised we still haven't settled down at home enough to get started on editing our photos and blogging about the wedding, honeymoon and the Church Camp on Grace. We haven't even gotten round to sending out all our thank you cards for the wedding! All my blogging has been done in the office thus far (during little morning tea or lunch or afternoon tea breaks - yes, we get many breaks...it helps to ease the eyes, de-frazzle the brain cells and stretch out the back, except I still spend my time staring into the computer screen)
I've digressed. What I wanted to say was...
96.5FM was on in the car and Focus on the Family came on air (It's incredible that a friend of mine works with them in Singapore) with a group of lady authors and Christian psychologists discussing on self glorification versus giving glory to God with our lives. One confessed being addicted to pride and this was what caught my attention. She explained that with many, our whole lives are revolved around bringing glory to the self. From the minute we wake, we unconsciously desire to be loved, accepted, affirmed, recognised, praised. Our desire carries through in the way we think, speak, behave, treat others, raise children, you name it. The degree to which this takes place would vary from person to person I imagine, but it is still a prevalent occurrence.
The self longs to be justified, longs to be right and not misunderstood, mis-judged (ok, so I added this statement).
The reason this one got hold of my listening ear was that I know I am full of pride. Self consciousness, wanting to be seen and heard and esteemed, wanting to be served first, complaining over little things that don't seem good enough, biting someone else's head when they don't do the things we expect of them can all stem from pride. This little worm manifests itself in a myriad of ugly, though often subtle, ways.
How many times have I "structured my whole life", as one of the authors put it, around feeding my inner pride and the longing to be put on some form of a pedestal. We may shy away from the public eye and prefer to stay inconspicuous, and yet still have pride. Why? Because pride is where we come before God in our own hearts and minds. We're focused on what the next person thinks of us, how they will respond to us and the list goes on.
The ladies on the show all agreed that it had to come down to us honestly and openly asking the Holy Spirit to take over in this area. To me, this means releasing our personal agenda to Him so that we're not living for man but God first and God alone. From there, all other things fall into place. They also highlighted that this is an ongoing process which is often difficult as it takes discipline and focus on God to not just fall back and get trapped again into our old thought patterns and habits.
This is definitely an area I need to work on. I like having a sense of control. A good handle on the various aspects that together make my existence and life. Often though, my grip will slip as God allows me to be challenged. I dread moments like that but it's God's way of nudging me in the right direction. He knows full well that if I don't let Him hold everything together, my whole being and all that surrounds will eventually crumble in my own palm.
(Dr Juliana Slattery, Christian psychologist, led the discussion. I believe her book touches on this subject)
I've digressed. What I wanted to say was...
96.5FM was on in the car and Focus on the Family came on air (It's incredible that a friend of mine works with them in Singapore) with a group of lady authors and Christian psychologists discussing on self glorification versus giving glory to God with our lives. One confessed being addicted to pride and this was what caught my attention. She explained that with many, our whole lives are revolved around bringing glory to the self. From the minute we wake, we unconsciously desire to be loved, accepted, affirmed, recognised, praised. Our desire carries through in the way we think, speak, behave, treat others, raise children, you name it. The degree to which this takes place would vary from person to person I imagine, but it is still a prevalent occurrence.
The self longs to be justified, longs to be right and not misunderstood, mis-judged (ok, so I added this statement).
The reason this one got hold of my listening ear was that I know I am full of pride. Self consciousness, wanting to be seen and heard and esteemed, wanting to be served first, complaining over little things that don't seem good enough, biting someone else's head when they don't do the things we expect of them can all stem from pride. This little worm manifests itself in a myriad of ugly, though often subtle, ways.
How many times have I "structured my whole life", as one of the authors put it, around feeding my inner pride and the longing to be put on some form of a pedestal. We may shy away from the public eye and prefer to stay inconspicuous, and yet still have pride. Why? Because pride is where we come before God in our own hearts and minds. We're focused on what the next person thinks of us, how they will respond to us and the list goes on.
The ladies on the show all agreed that it had to come down to us honestly and openly asking the Holy Spirit to take over in this area. To me, this means releasing our personal agenda to Him so that we're not living for man but God first and God alone. From there, all other things fall into place. They also highlighted that this is an ongoing process which is often difficult as it takes discipline and focus on God to not just fall back and get trapped again into our old thought patterns and habits.
This is definitely an area I need to work on. I like having a sense of control. A good handle on the various aspects that together make my existence and life. Often though, my grip will slip as God allows me to be challenged. I dread moments like that but it's God's way of nudging me in the right direction. He knows full well that if I don't let Him hold everything together, my whole being and all that surrounds will eventually crumble in my own palm.
(Dr Juliana Slattery, Christian psychologist, led the discussion. I believe her book touches on this subject)
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