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The pride of life

Proverbs 11:2 (AMP) When pride comes [boiling up with an arrogant attitude of self-importance], then come dishonor and shame, but with the humble [the teachable who have been chiseled by trial and who have learned to walk humbly with God] there is wisdom and soundness of mind.

Social media is crazy these days. I have to watch what I read and what I allow to influence my opinions of others. I have to do the same when listening to other preachers. There is something that I noticed that is really popular with click bait, “we have been taught wrong.” There are some things we have had to unlearn, but most it was grounded in self. Listen, I am all for reading the Bible for ourselves, but I also teach that we should not be reading it for our right to live. As I was in prayer yesterday, the words “pride of life” came up and that is what we have to watch out for as ministers of the gospel. As I have written earlier, pride is so very easy to slide back into. Pride is all about self, self-worth, self-gain, self-acceptance, etc.

I was led to read Mark 7. Jesus is confronted by the Pharisees because they have witnessed his disciples did not ceremonially wash their hands before eating. He corrects them with a parable. What got my attention was, about hearing. Remember is Revelations 2 and 3 it was stated “those that have ears to hear let them hear”, this was repeated to all seven of the churches. I wrote about it in my blog titled Echo. This is what I asked myself on reflection of it:

Am I a hearer? Am I putting His Word forefront in my mind? Am I doing (taking action) according to His Word? Am I faithful to His Word? Those were the questions I asked myself. My husband has this checklist for us when we want to make sure we are successful: Am I where God called me to be? Am I doing what God called me to do? Am I doing it with the people God called me to be with? A heart for the ministry of reconciliation is going to answer yes to all three.

Mark 7:14-23 (MEV) When He had called all the people to Him, He said, “Listen to Me, every one of you, and understand: There is nothing from outside a man that by entering him can defile him. But the things which come out of the man are what defile him. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” When He had left the people and entered the house, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable. He said to them, “Are you so without understanding also? Do you not know that anything from the outside that enters a man cannot defile him, because it does not enter his heart, but into his stomach, and goes out into the sewer, thus purifying all foods?” And He said, “What comes out of a man is what defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adultery, fornication, murder, theft, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride and foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”

The battle of pride is one we fight within ourselves, but not alone. First let us identify what the pride of life really is. The pride of life is leaning on anything other than God, including yourself. It can be about the revelation you received and no one else. It is any thought of superiority to others. We can get so haughty as believers and take the set apart scriptures as self-building and self-protection. The pride of life has to do with an over emphasis of oneself. There is a temptation for gratification, and we seek it out in areas that would not be unhealthy but when turned inward become that way.

How do we combat this pride of life? Ask yourself who am I trying to protect? Ask yourself if this is true or is it my imaginations getting away with me? Ask yourself, who do I care more about? Most importantly, with Christ be glorified in this?

Philippians 2: 4-8 (AMP) Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this same attitude in yourselves which was in Christ Jesus [look to Him as your example in selfless humility], who, although He existed in the form and unchanging essence of God [as One with Him, possessing the fullness of all the divine attributes—the entire nature of deity], did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped or asserted [as if He did not already possess it, or was afraid of losing it]; but emptied Himself [without renouncing or diminishing His deity, but only temporarily giving up the outward expression of divine equality and His rightful dignity] by assuming the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men [He became completely human but was without sin, being fully God and fully man]. After He was found in [terms of His] outward appearance as a man [for a divinely-appointed time], He humbled Himself [still further] by becoming obedient [to the Father] to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Can you think of anyone you can bless outside of your home? Hebrews 10: 24-25 (AMP) says, “and let us consider [thoughtfully] how we may encourage one another to love and to do good deeds, not forsaking our meeting together [as believers for worship and instruction], as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more [faithfully] as you see the day [of Christ’s return] approaching.” What I love about our prayer team is that they have not only sought to pray for our community, but they also go out and seek ways to bless the community. In 2025 they passed out 750 care packages to teachers and workers within our city schools. Our church has about five faithful people (myself included) who come together and pray on Tuesdays. I can see their growth spiritually and it is encouraging.

Like I said, pride is easy for all of us to fall into. It takes dying daily to ourselves and becoming bondservant to Christ (total submission). Didn’t Christ pay the price for all of this? Yes, He did. The battle has already been won; we just have to surrender to the true King. We are all in different modes of our spiritual growth. I encourage you to mature and seek healing that only Christ can bring. If you notice a cycle of battles, know that it is not from God. However, we can grow stronger in Him through it. Let us continue to seek the best for others and be teachable. Repentance is not a bad word.

Lord, Your Word says You set Yourself against the proud and give favor to the humble (James 4:6). I know we fail sometimes. In fact, we are at times so full of pride that we do not bring You any glory. So I pray for humility for myself and my family. I submit this to You, because I know it is what I want in my life. Lord, You said that pride breeds quarrels (Proverbs 13:10). Make us humble people who receive advice and find wisdom. Take away any pride and give us humble hearts that are obedient to You. Seach our hearts and make a change within us. You said blessed are those who are meek and humble of heart (Matthew 5:5). That is who we desire to be. We desire for Your glory to be seen through us. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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Let Loose of Control

2 Corinthians 3:17 (NIV) Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

It has been seven years since it snowed here in Opelika, Alabama. Just last week, an hour and a half north of us had snow, we did not. The infrequency for snow here means we do not prepare our roads before hand. The snow started to fall around noon yesterday and a couple of hours later the roads were already getting impassable. My husband works in Georgia and he said that the interstate started backing up by the time he got off, at two in the afternoon. Some people were stranded in their cars all evening. Do you know how much snow we got? Less than three inches, not even enough to cover my foot.

One of my sons went out with a friend and they drove around an recreational all terrain golf cart. They walked down to the convenience store to get some drinks and just did what teenage boys do. Whatever came to their minds. He said he liked it when he drove the all terrain, but it was not nearly as fun as the passenger. He preferred to be in control. Why is that we want to call all of the shots? How different God is with such! We feel safer when we call all of the shots, but what happens when we let the Holy Spirit lead?

I am reminded about a story in Ezekiel. Ezekiel had a vision in Ezekiel 47. In his vision water was flowing from under the threshold of the temple. As the water was flowing through the outer gate they measured it four times. It measured ankle-deep, then knee-deep, then to the hips and finally the water had risen so high they could not pass through it. They had to swim. God revealed to Ezekiel in verse 12 (AMP), “By the river on its bank, on one side and on the other, will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither and their fruit will not fail. They shall bear every month because their water flows from the sanctuary, and their fruit will be for food and their leaves for healing.”

1 Corinthians 6:19 (AMP) Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is within you, whom you have [received as a gift] from God, and that you are not your own [property]?

John 7:38 (AMP) He who believes in Me [who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Me], as the Scripture has said, ‘From his innermost being will flow continually rivers of living water.’”

God is very intentional with His Word. That is why it is important that we see it as one voice. God will not contradict Himself and He always reveals His heart to us. The vision given to Ezekiel was in regards to how to divide the land to the Israelite tribes. When I read it this time, it reminded me of the rivers of living water that flows from us because of the Holy Spirit. What an illustration of the flow. It is not until the waters overtake me that I lose control. I can swim freely.

Have you ever floated in the waters? I have. I would spend summers at the beach and my favorite part was to get a donut shaped float, lay in it face up, and just float. I would float for hours. Keeping an eye on the shore. I knew where I was and knew how to get back to the shore. In the evening I would still feel the effects of the day, as I felt the floating in my sleep. That is what it is like to be engulfed by the Holy Spirit during the day. At night you should feel the effects and float.

Luke 6:47-49 (AMP) Everyone who comes to Me and listens to My words and obeys them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a [far-sighted, practical, and sensible] man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and yet could not shake it, because it had been securely built and founded on the rock. But the one who has [merely] heard and has not practiced [what I say], is like a [foolish] man who built a house on the ground without any foundation, and the torrent burst against it; and it immediately collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”

There are going to be times, like today, that you are not going to be in control. We are not able to travel outside of walking today. It just is not safe. I am okay with that. I am going to adhere to wisdom. Some do not like that because, “ain’t nobody gonna tell me what I can’t do.” What foundation are we building our homes on with that mindset? God is so different than the world. It is through my surrender that I have freedom. It is through me letting the flow of the rivers of living waters take over me that I have my security. Ankle deep is not doing it for me any longer. Sure you can fish in it, but what are you limiting yourself to? It is time to let loose of the controls.

Abba, our Father, our Jehovah, You are so Wonderful. You are so Holy. Thank You for Your Son, our Restorer. Thank You for the Holy Spirit, our Teacher. In Your Word it says that rivers of flowing water would come through us. We recognize that cannot be done without the surrender of our will to the Holy Spirit. Let us stop wading in waters that we still have control, keeping one foot on the shore at all times. Let us step into the overflow. Let us become engulfed so that true freedom can be placed in our lives. Let us be as you envisioned, fruitful and healing to others. You gave us all that You are through Your Son. Let us cultivate the fruit of love in our lives so that it is all that flows out of us. We repent for holding onto areas of control and when the trials of life took over us, we were not secure in You. We choose surrender today. We choose forgiveness today. We choose love today. We choose hope today. We choose joy today. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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My Treasure

Isaiah 33:6 (AMPC) And there shall be stability in your times, an abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the reverent fear and worship of the Lord is your treasure and His.

I love this verse. This verse has been on the cover of my Facebook page off and on for the past few years. How much do you desire stability? Stability in our lives makes us feel more secure and safe. You may be saying, ‘look at the things going on in the world, do they look stable?’ Right now there is a war in Israel. The United States just launched an air strike against Iran in retaliation for the attack that killed three American soldiers. Let’s not talk about the price of everything going up and the interest rates. Are those the things we look at to gauge stability?

John 14:27 (AMP) Peace I leave with you; My [perfect] peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid. [Let My perfect peace calm you in every circumstance and give you courage and strength for every challenge.]

An abundance of salvation. This my heart leaps for because I want to see the captives set free. As I have written before, ‘Sozo’ is the Greek word for salvation. It means to save, deliver, heal, restore, to be made whole. In Hebrew it means deliverance and redemption. We cannot separate salvation from the need of repentance. I grow in my salvation when I realize I have a great need for Christ. I have to remind myself of that daily, because Amanda still likes to live. I so much want to surrender to that Sozo life.

John 10:10 (AMP) The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows].

How many of us would like more wisdom and knowledge? I know I would. That is why I read every day, if I am able. Most days I am able to spend a couple of hours to read. I know that it is a something that not everyone is capable of doing. I did not start out with a couple of hours. I started out with maybe five to ten minutes. I had to make it a priority in my life. I make sure that i am at least reading a few verses from my Bible every day. When I am at the gym, I am listening to the Word being taught. I love the Messenger X app. It is completely free and is tool from Messenger International, a ministry of John and Lisa Bevere. Reading without application really is a form of disobedience. I will go further in that in my last point.

Joshua 1:8 (AMP) This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall read [and meditate on] it day and night, so that you may be careful to do [everything] in accordance with all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will be successful.

The reverent fear and worship of the Lord is your treasure and His. This is where i want to sit for a moment. This fear is not of failure nor of punishment. It is ‘God, am I honoring You?’ Once we receive salvation we become new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). I am now called into the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18). I am now an ambassador for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20). God gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8) and the Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16). Jesus gifted us with five fold ministry (Ephesians 4:10-11) and the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:12-13). The fear of the Lord is also a gift. It is even a treasure. I take the Word very seriously, even the commands that Jesus left us. I am constantly allowing the Holy Spirit to put me in check because of the fear of the Lord. One verse really stood out to me this past week:

Exodus 20:7 (AMP) You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain [that is, irreverently, in false affirmations or in ways that impugn the character of God]; for the Lord will not hold guiltless nor leave unpunished the one who takes His name in vain [disregarding its reverence and its power].

Most of us were brought up with warning of not saying ‘oh my God’ or ‘Jesus Christ’ as response to be startled or in the heat of an argument, as in taking the Lord’s name in vain. How about how we live our lives as Christ’s ambassadors. Are we selfish? Are we self seeking? Do we put others down? Are we putting ourselves first? Do we take an account of a suffered wrong? Are we slandering? Do we stir up gossip and strife? All of these are taking the name of the Lord in vain. I have started to take this very serious in my life. I have written before that my prayer this year has been for God to increase His love in me, so that it is all that flows out of me. That requires me to submit to His cleaning some things out of me. Boy has this been an eye opener and stretching of my faith. The love walk is not an easy one. However, with the right training, it can become something we enjoy. I have to walk the walk and not just talk the talk. FYI, those who just talk it and do not live it actually come off unloving. It is truly a humbling thing to go back and apologize. Asking for forgiveness is an essential part of our love walk. I have to continually die to the rights of Amanda.

I go to the gym five days a week, not because it helps me looks good. I go because it gives me strength that I am going to need one day (we all get older). That is why I submit to the Lord. It is not about me looking good. Every day I need that strength to go through some really tough things. I know that I am being watched by people. I know they are writing down my words. That can be a really scary thing. In James it talks about the great weight it is to teach the Word (James 1:1). People hold you to a higher standard. Then it talks about if anyone who does not say the wrong thing then they are perfect (James 1:2). I am not perfect. I do misquote things, not with the intention of twisting their meaning, but in my zeal for the Word. Why do I do it then? Honestly, I would rather not be doing it. Like Paul, I am a bond-servant to it (Galatians 1:10). Even if my words are judged, it is His Word that brings freedom. I am in awe of who He is. I cannot keep it to myself.

When I focused on the reverent fear of the Lord, as my treasure, things began to change in my life. Stability is in my time. I am not afraid for the future or what is going on around me. I am quicker to repent and put into practice what the Word says (James 1:25). I take it seriously. I have an abundance of salvation. I have more life, more hunger, more thirst, more contentment, more wholeness like never before. Wisdom and knowledge started to chase after me. The light bulbs started going off. The way I present the Word changed. Proverbs 9:10 says, “The [reverent] fear of the Lord [that is, worshiping Him and regarding Him as truly awesome] is the beginning and the preeminent part of wisdom [its starting point and its essence], and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding and spiritual insight (AMP).” My relationship with God is so much deeper than I could have ever imagined. He is not some distant God. He is not a God that cannot be reached. He is my secret place. I am surrounded by Him. The more I enter in, the more I am consumed by Him. He desires to meet with us face to face. He desires to commune with us like we read about with Abraham and Moses. We can have that. I do not need anyone to write books about me, when He has written the best one (Psalms 139:16, Ephesians 2:10). His authorship did not do away with my free will, I will still have to give an account (2 Corinthians 5:10). Focus on Him. Honor the Lord. Let Him be your treasure.

Yahweh, Elohim, our Master, our Creator, You are Holy. We do not need anything but You. Thank You for Your Son. Thank You for the Way that You provided, established at the beginning. You are the Author of the beginning and the end. Thank You for the Holy Spirit. We are alive in You because of that great gift. Thank You for the gift of Your Word, of the five fold ministry, of the body of Christ. We are sorry for the times we took these gifts for granted and did not hold them dear. Thank You for the gift of the righteous fear of You. You said that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. We desire Your Wisdom. We desire Your ways. We desire the stability that only You can bring. We repent for seeking out anything or anyone that would take attempt to take Your place. Thank You for the gift of salvation, for restoring us to wholeness. Thank You for forgiveness, let us be courageous in giving it away freely. We choose hope today. We choose love today. We choose forgiveness today. We choose joy today. In Jesus Name, Amen.