As we opened our fourth lesson in Daniel we read the very telling paragraph on page 41 by Gregory the Great, "Pride makes me think that I am the cause of my achievements, and that I deserve my abilities. Pride leads me to despise other people who don't measure up. Pride causes an illusion of self-sufficiency." On the flip side we discovered, "Humility comes from the reality of God dependency". I encourage you to re-read both of those last statements and let them sink in.
We discussed how taking credit for our ideas, abilities and talents promotes pride in our lives. Too many pats on our backs can lead to thinking we are responsible for our abilities instead of giving God the glory.
Question 3 about how pride seeps into our hearts and lives received several responses:
distance from God (we moved He didn't.); apathy and laziness; however the big one was selfishness. We read from Acts 17:24-28 which puts everything into perspective. It says that apart from God we are and have nothing. Verse 28 states, "for in Him we live and move and have our being".
We also discussed how and why we are instructed to speak to our sisters in Christ if we see pride and sin growing in them. Galatians 6:1 says to restore (help and guide) them gently. Some may even benefit from the restoration example of others, according to 1 Timothy 5:20. However, we must keep in mind Matthew 7:1-5 where we are told to examine our own lives and keep a "clean house" so that others may not fall because of our personal sins. This may not be easy. We might be afraid of their reactions. However, it could be the difference between life eternal and death.
We talked about how interruptions (page 46) can really....... interrupt our day! - that we are prideful of our "lists", "agendas" and "schedules" and that our reactions to these interruptions reveal our levels of pride or humility. A prideful heart says, "ME first", "MY schedule", "Why should I have to do, be or have this?" A humble heart says, "OTHERS first", "my time is NOT MY OWN", "how might I help or do or give this?"
As we finished out Daniel chapter four it was wonderful to see King Nebuchadnezzar have a change of heart (repentance) after seven years of eating grass! He finally realized he was but a blip on the time line of history. And after God gently humbled King Nebuchadnezzar He restored him to the power he knew previously, and more! God also does that daily with us - It's called GRACE!
Written by Melanie
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