Overcoming Pride: Trusting God's Guidance for a Fulfilling Life
Prideful thought: I can do this. I can figure out this life on my own. I've got enough smarts and wisdom.
Truth-filled thought: Trust the Lord. He is leading me. I must humble myself to follow His ways, and he will show me what paths to take.
Pride can be a stumbling block to our faith and walk with the Lord. It can lead us to think that we don't need God's help or guidance and can handle everything on our own. But this is a dangerous mindset that can lead us astray.
The problem with pride is that it convinces us to depend on our understanding and wisdom. We think we can figure out this life independently, without any help from anyone else, including God. But that's not the way God designed for us to live. Instead, he created us to "walk humbly with our God" (Micah 6:8b). True humility requires us to trust in the Lord, seek His will in all we do, and let go of our ideas of wisdom.
The Bible says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Don't be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the Lord and turn away from evil. Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones" (Proverbs 3:5-8 NLT). I believe this is one of the reasons God spoke to me about this early in my first year of grief because this will bring even my body health, and I prayed to become healthy and whole.
When we trust in our own wisdom and understanding, we limit ourselves to our limited human perspective. As a result, we miss out on the limitless knowledge and guidance that God freely gives us. But when we humble ourselves before Him, acknowledging that we don't have all the answers, we open ourselves up to His guidance and direction.
To truly humble ourselves before the Lord, we must get rid of all the filth and evil in our lives and accept the word God has planted in our hearts. That word has the power to save our souls (James 1:21 NLT).
Joshua told the people to make themselves holy and ready for the Lord, for "tomorrow the Lord will do great things that will surprise you completely" (Joshua 3:5 EASY). Let us also make ourselves holy and ready for whatever the Lord has in store for us. Let us do so with true humility, trusting in Him alone.
Also, in James 4:10, we are reminded to "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you." When we humble ourselves before God to seek His guidance and direction, He can work through us in ways we could never have imagined.
So let us seek true humility, casting aside our prideful thoughts and trusting the Lord with all our hearts. Let us seek His will in all we do, knowing He will guide us and lead us on the right path. And let us be willing to become recognizable or known if that is what He has in store for us, trusting that He will use us for His glory.