Category Archives: Pride

Success – Pride – Downfall

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“But after [Uzziah] had become strong, he became proud to his own destruction and broke faith with the Lord, his God.” (2Ch.26:16)

How difficult it is to handle success without pride overtaking us!

Uzziah became king of Judah when he was 16 and reigned in Jerusalem for 52 years. At first he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He sought God through the prophet, Zechariah. He built up the defenses of Judah, raised a large army that defeated the Philistines and constructed public works. As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success.

But the Bible reports that he then presumed to enter the temple to burn incense, a duty reserved to the descendants of Aaron. They challenged him, he became angry and as he was raging at them, leprosy broke out on his forehead, which caused him to be isolated for the rest of his life.

In my 38 year career for a large oil company, I saw a number of good men who experienced success, only to see a pride build up in them that led to overreach in the exercise of their authority. I too, struggled at times with pride in how I related to others, and in allowing my position to define who I was.

Even Jesus’ disciples, James and John, sought the position of sitting at Jesus’ right and left. The others became indignant, but Jesus said, “Whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve.” (Mk. 10:43, 45) The reason Jesus said it was easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle than a rich man into the Kingdom of God is because of the pride that often accompanies wealth and success.

Our daughter, Emily has Down syndrome. I have learned so much about humility and the love of God from her. She does not presume any special position, only to love her family and friends and to experience our love in return.

One of the problems with how we handle success is its definition. The world views success in terms of position, authority, power and wealth, while God views success by whether we are fulfilling his will in our lives. If our focus is on seeking God’s will, we might be better able to handle the outcome, whether wealth or poverty.

In my morning prayer I sometimes recite a Litany of Humility given me by a friend. “O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, deliver me from the desire of being esteemed, loved, extolled, honored, praised, consulted or approved. Deliver me from the fear of being humiliated, despised, forgotten, ridiculed or wronged. Grant me the grace to desire that others might be loved more, esteemed more, chosen, praised, preferred and become holier than I, provided that I become as holy as I should.”

How do you deal with success and pride in your life?

Pride Undermining Success

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“But after he had become strong, he became proud to his own destruction and broke faith with the Lord.” (2 Ch. 26:16)

How difficult it is to handle success without pride overtaking us!

Uzziah became king of Judah when he was 16 and reigned in Jerusalem for 52 years. At first he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He sought God through the prophet, Zechariah. He built up the defenses of Judah, raised a large army that defeated the Philistines and constructed public works. As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success.

But the Bible reports he then presumed to enter the temple to burn incense, a duty reserved to the descendants of Aaron. They challenged him, he became angry and as he was raging at them, leprosy broke out on his forehead, which caused him to be isolated for the rest of his life.

In my 38 year career with a large oil company, I saw a number of good men who experienced success, only to see a pride build up in them that led to overreach in the exercise of their authority and subsequent downfall. I too, struggled at times with pride in how I related to others, and in allowing my position to define who I was.

Even the disciples, James and John, sought the position of sitting at Jesus’ right and left. The others became indignant, but Jesus said, “Whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant…For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve.” (Mk. 10:43, 45) The reason Jesus said it was easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle than a rich man into the Kingdom of God is because of the pride that often accompanies wealth and worldly success.

Our daughter, Emily has Down syndrome. I have learned so much about humility and the love of God from her. She does not presume any special position, only to love her family and friends and to experience our love in return.

One of the problems with how we handle success is its definition. The world views success in terms of position, authority, power, and wealth, while God views success in terms of whether we are fulfilling his will for our lives. If our focus is on seeking God’s will, we might be better able to handle success however it is defined.

In my morning prayer I sometimes recite a Litany of Humility given me by a friend.

“O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, deliver me from the desire of being esteemed, loved, extolled, honored, praised, consulted or approved. Deliver me from the fear of being humiliated, despised, forgotten, ridiculed or wronged. Grant me the grace to desire that others might be loved more, esteemed more, chosen, praised, preferred, and become holier than I, provided that I become as holy as I should.”

How do you deal with success and pride in your life?

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Pride Resisting God’s Desire for Us

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How often do we let our pride get in the way of something God wants to do for us or with us?

This almost happened to Naaman, commander of the army of Aram in the Old Testament.  He had leprosy.  He heard from a young girl from Israel, about the prophet, Elisha, and how he could cure Naaman’s leprosy.   After receiving a letter of introduction from his king and taking ten talents of silver and six thousand shekels of gold, he set off to see Elisha.

Instead of coming out to greet him and praying over him, Elisha sent a messenger to Naaman telling him to “go wash yourself seven times in the Jordan.”  “But Naaman went away angry and said, ‘I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy.’” (2 Kings 5:11)

Naaman’s pride was wounded.  He was commander of the army of Aram and had a letter of introduction from his king.  He had gold and silver for an offering and a retinue with chariots.  He expected Elisha to personally pray over him.  He certainly wasn’t expecting to hear from a mere messenger and be asked to do something as silly as washing himself seven times in the Jordan River.

Fortunately for Naaman, his servants prevailed upon him to do as Elisha’s messenger instructed, “And his flesh was restored and became clean like that of young boy.”

Too often we let our pride resist the help God sends our way through others: in assisting us in some task or in praying with us for some need or healing; in helping us to forgive someone who has offended us instead of holding onto resentment.  Here is a story of the latter example.

Jim headed up a software development team for IBM comprised of approximately 75 employees and a few subcontractors on a Homeland Security contract.  The job and working environment involved many challenges and Jim was working to transform the work of the team to meet the goals of the contract.

At one point Jim called a subcontractor of long experience to follow up on a critical task he had been asked to perform.  When the subcontractor answered his cell phone, he mistook Jim for another member of the team and he began to describe how much he disliked Jim, insulting both him and his work.  Because of a bad cell connection, Jim was unable to get the person’s attention and finally decided to just hang up.

Later the subcontractor realized he had been talking to Jim and became quite concerned, asking Jim’s colleagues what he should do.  When he met with Jim the following day and before he had a chance to say anything, Jim put out his hand and said, “I forgive you.  The contractor apologized profusely and was glad Jim did not take action against his behavior.  Jim told him that he had no hard feelings and hoped that he would see Jim’s reaction as a catalyst for improving their working relationship and getting the job done.  

In contrast to Naaman, Jim did not let his pride give way to anger and resentment, but instead offered his forgiveness, and his team went on to successfully complete the work of the contract.  Jim was following the example of Jesus.  “Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart.”  (Mt. 11:29)