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Why We Find Pride in Others So Annoying
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, chapter 8:
"There is one vice of which no man in the world is free; which every one in the world loathes when he sees it in someone else; and of which hardly any people, except Christians, ever imagine that they are guilty themselves.
"I have heard people admit that they are bad-tempered, or that they cannot keep their heads about girls or drink, or even that they are cowards. "I do not think I have ever heard anyone who was not a Christian accuse himself of this vice. And at the same time I have very seldom met anyone, who was not a Christian, who showed the slightest mercy to it in others.
There is no fault which makes a man more unpopular, and no fault which we are more unconscious of in ourselves. And the more we have it ourselves, the more we dislike it in others.
The vice I am talking of is Pride. . . .In fact, if you want to find out how proud you are the easiest way is to ask yourself, “How much do I dislike it when other people snub me, or refuse to take any notice of me, or shove their oar in, or patronize me, or show off?”
So, where is this vice of pride in me? Well, at just about every level, the deeper I dig. I keep hoping as I dig through layers of my fleshly life, I'll find a really "good" place. At the very core, aren't I a good guy? At the very core, aren't you and I a good man or woman?
To begin to answer the question, I consider what the writer to the Hebrews said:
"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account."
~Hebrews 4:12-13
I am almost finishing rereading and listening to, "The normal Christian life," by Watchman Nee, as I was encouraged by Student Ministries Pastor Aaron Bauer at our Faith Church in Kent. First read in 1992 and 1994, parts of it are hitting far deeper, this time.One of Nee's lines is a commentary on C.S. Lewis. Nee says my pride competes with the pride of other people in my life. Our pride competes. Other people's pride competes with my pride.
I am prideful about my:
...pastoral education, Bible knowledge, and what I "do" and "accomplish" in my Faith Church in Kent
...service as a chaplain with Prisoners for Christ at the Maleng Regional Justice Center and with the Chaplaincy Advisory Group in Kent
...knowledge of baseball, basketball, and football
...impact or influence with men I "mentor" in and outside the sphere of faith
...numerous frustrations and failures as a public middle school special education teacher
...responses to whatever matters most and the people I interact with daily
.... ___________________________________________________
...____________________________________________________
What does your "pride list" look like? Maybe, you don't struggle with pride, like me. If not, what do you struggle with? If you do, fill in the blanks because there is more!
Ugh! I repent, Lord, right now, I repent of all these things. I have been arrogant. Right now, I am dead to me and alive to You!
If you can join in with me, c'mon along.
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
and blameless in your judgment.
and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
and blameless in your judgment.
~Psalm 51:3-4
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