The 1st of 7... part 1...

Today, we begin.  And while I did find several different sites that ranked these sins in order, make no mistake about one thing: I am using no specific order.  I said in the beginning of this that all sin is equal, because all sin separates us from the Father.  That is a fact.  Therefore, please know that the numbering system I will use is completely random, and there is no differing level to any of what will follow in this study.  Sin brings death, no matter how large or small, and all of us are guilty of it in grand fashion.

I also promised that this might get uncomfortable, and I'm here to tell you that it already is for me.  Today's beginning was chose solely because it is one of the largest blind-spots in my self-evaluation mirror, and it is high time I faced and did something about it.  Therefore, I have chosen to tackle one of the bigger monsters for me, personally, right off the bat.  But again, please know that whatever God says about these issues in His Word, He is right, and there is no arguing that point.  To argue with God is to question Him, and that, also, is sin... and it relates to how we begin, which would be with pride.

"Pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall."

Proverbs 16:18, HCSB

So it should come as no shock to me that every time I have been prideful about something I have or do, it has been taken away from me in pretty short order.  I get arrogant, and then I lose whatever it is I am bragging about.  What's funny, if you want to have a good laugh at my expense, is that this has happened with jobs, relationships, money, belongings, and more than once in all categories, and yet I still wrestle with a prideful approach to things.

You see, I am blessed to serve in my capacity and ministry, both in and out of my office and career.  The problem is that I don't tell people that I am "blessed to serve" as often as I should.  No.  I tend to respond by stating that I am good at what I do, and then I wonder why I don't get the advancements I seek.  I have a problem identifying my own place, which speaks to the sin of being prideful.

Another fault in this, friends, is that I don't pray about this enough.  I know, I should be praying to relieve this constantly, always seeking the face and will of the Father, but I'm not.  Somewhere in the back of my mind, I see this small glimpse of possibility that tells me I might just be able to do this on my own, and I fall for my own mental rouse each and every time.  It is such the conundrum, because as a Christian, I know that certain things are in place and secure, like my salvation.  I know that Christ's Atonement cannot be erased by me or anyone else, because no one has the power to outshine Him.  Yet instead of boasting only in the cross (Galatians 6:14), I tend to boast in the cross AND in other things.

I hope you can see how this is difficult for me... but even in that statement (which I deleted from my awareness of it, and then re-entered so I could use it as an example), I am seeking pity from you to soother my now-wounded pride from speaking so openly about the failings of my pride in myself.  It is a vicious and painful circle, but one I hope to break free from through this study.

It is in that light that I will seek your prayers for this portion, for the process, and for the study as a whole.  I need it, and I know it. 

On a different note, though, we need to also look at the classic example of pride, and that is the enemy himself.  That will be saved for next time, though.  For now, remember that self-examination and self-awareness are extremely important in the area of pride.  Boastful people generally end up with either nothing to boast about or no one to boast to, after all... and as "imitators of Christ" (1st Corinthians 11:1), we should really operate in a tad more humility, should we not?

God bless you all!!!