Lent: Day Thirty-one ~ Pride

Ezek. 7:10 Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth; the rod hath blossomed, pride hath budded.

Pride

Prov.  16: 18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.

Pride goes before a fall is a paraphrase of an ancient Hebrew proverb, designed to warn man that excessive pride will often cause one to fail. Excessive pride? Oh, I know people like that. I have family members who are so proud of their beautiful richly decorated homes and their fancy garden and pool by the wayside. That would be pride in the excessive. A ‘look what I have and you don’t’ attitude.

Me, I’m just happy in being alive, having a roof over my head, and having food in the refrigerator to fix for my family. I’m not a prideful person and any time it tries to rear its ugly head I have to swat it away like a pesky fly, kill it before it becomes too excessive.

We are not called to be prideful among men. To me, pride is a form of shame also; shame of health issues, shame of poverty issues or shame of living arrangements, all a form of pride. When someone is ashamed to take assistance from someone reaching out to them, pride rears its ugly head and the words that come out are, “No, no, I don’t need any help.”

Man is so prideful that he would rather do without than to take a handout. Even if it is freely offered, man in his shame hides his face proudly stating to themselves that they are too good for charity. This is the fall; they will hunger. Sure they’ll pray for food, a better job, ways to make ends meet but when assistance arrives they are too prideful and miss a rish blessing.

I think the problem is that man tries too hard to acquire something instead of knowing when a blessing arrives; it passes by on the train heading out of town and they miss the opportunity because of their pride.

About eight years ago, I thought I was too proud, but when Steven lost his job, was going blind, and we had no means for food we surely didn’t pass up the food at the food pantry that was ours if only our pride wouldn’t walk through the door with us.

Sure I was witness to people taking advantage of a system that was put in place to help people like us. I myself wasn’t able to go out and get a job because Steven was losing his sight, he needed to be taken to the doctors, he needed to be taken places that he could not have gotten to on his own. Yes we were offered gas for our truck from the Pastor and no we didn’t hide in shame, we HAD to take it. We were learning how to humble ourselves.

When we needed help in moving from Texas to Nebraska, the arm of the Lord reached out and guided us seeing to it that we had a house to come to, accepting assistance from people who didn’t even know us, to ones who knew us personally. We basically were in God’s hands for about three years before things began to change. Steven got his sight back, Steven got a job and we learned a lot about what the face of patience looks like along with a humble spirit, along with watching any ounce of pride fleeing from us like we were lepers.

I then was diagnosed with lower lumbar facet joint arthritis in my back. A chronic pain which would limit my mobility but praise God, didn’t leave me completely immobile. I can do lots of stuff, but pride often tries to rear its head. Like some Loch Ness monster, it peeks out only for me to see. “No, I don’t need a cane,” “No, I don’t need pain pills,” “No, I don’t need this or that or the other thing.” Yup, pride, swimming in the murky waters wanting me to take a hold of it BUT never really ensnaring me in its trap.

Sure I can be too proud to declare that I’ve stood in line at the Department of Welfare, I can put on a brave face and claim ‘I NEVER stood in the aisles of a food pantry.’ But what would the point in that be? I’m here to tell you that even the Godliest of people have suffered the pangs of pride; threw off the ugliness and embraced true blessings.

The next time you look at a homeless man or woman and think they are the scum of the earth, why not think of what put them there? Why not show a little compassion and understanding knowing that not ALL homeless people WANT to be where they are. They just never caught a break. Your pride won’t allow you to walk up to one and hand him coffee or a few quarters for some food. No, you’re too afraid he’ll just use the money for booze but really that is your pride talking. You’re too proud to approach the homeless.

Heb. 13: 2 Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

And keep in mind, while you’re sitting there all haughty and prideful, a fall will come when you least expect it and you’ll have no one else to blame but yourself. Pride is also dressed in boasting. Neither is attractive or becoming to a Christian.

Pss.10:4 The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.

11-11-11 Thankfulness and Glory

John 8:7 So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said to them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.
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We’ve arrived at the last day of the week which is 11-11-11. A culmination of Help the Less Fortunate Week. All those ‘ones’ in the date, makes me think of the number one front and center force in my life and that is the Lord God. Throughout this week I’ve given you a window into the world in which you live and perhaps maybe sit in judgment of innocent human beings. Have you hung pretty curtains at the window, so the low-life outside doesn’t look so clear. Have you put up shades on your window so their tattered and torn smelly clothes can’t be seen or inhaled? Have you turned your nose up to the needy?

This is what you have done in the season of Thanksgiving? Shut yourself off from giving and absorbed yourself in YOU. “I have all my Christmas shopping done! Aren’t I great?” “I dropped a five dollar bill in the Salvation Army bucket, instead of my usual one dollar!” Wow, don’t you just feel so good about YOU? I have not written this week to guilt you into anything. If you can not act of your own fruition then acting at all will be futile.

I’ve helped you to open your heart and mind into the world of compassion so that maybe when you see a person in need, you won’t turn away from them, out of disgust, maybe you’ll humble your heart, and go to them and see what they need and how you can help. Maybe they just need a cup of coffee, not a whole order of food, maybe the car behind you in the Wendy’s drive-thru could use a spontaneous act of kindness, maybe an elderly person in your building, complex, neighborhood could use a visitor. Maybe someone in the hospital where you’re visiting a friend or loved one, never gets to see a friend or loved one, why not go in and say, Hello?

Instead of gossiping behind peoples back who are not as fortunate as you, why not reach out to them with an arm of compassion. Why not bend in a different direction this holiday season and better yet, why not do it year round? Why wait for the holiday to begin?

Heb 13: 1-3  Let brotherly love continue.
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.

As we entertain ourselves in the company of like minded people, our hearts will overflow with the compassionate nature that Jesus had intended for us. When we surround ourselves in the body of lust, greed, perversion, we get lost in the mire and can never see clearly what God has intended for us on this Earth.
 
As I sit here in farm country, watching the harvesters reap what they sow, I look out into a nation who is being swallowed by earthquakes in divers places, fires, storms, unearthly behavior. Remember, we’ll be protected, because we as Christians will see the signs and wonders and won’t be caught unaware. We’ll have our arms wide open, and ears wide shut to all the naysayers who wish to drive us away from our innocent intent, and that is to help someone in need, without once asking for praise in return. Can you do that?
 
Why a person shuns people in need, is really beyond my comprehension. How can you neglect looking out the window and not SEE what is going on around you and how can you not care unless there is something in it for YOU? Have you ever just given, to give? Have you ever went above and beyond YOU, and thought of someone else, not for gain or recognition just for the sheer warmth that it left lingering in your spirit?
 
Feel that warmth of a giving heart. It is the rainbow of God lighting your soul. Don’t deny it when it happens to you, embrace it and do something because of it.
 

May the joy, peace and compassion envelop you this glorious season. Bring a miracle to life. All you have to do is...PRAY! Godspeed my friends...

“Remember this, what you do in secret, God sees it. What you think silently, God hears it. What you post publicly, would your mother be proud to call you hers? What you think is innocent, would your Father, think so too?” Joni Zipp

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Before you act, listen.
Before you react, think.
Before you spend, earn.
Before you criticize, wait.
Before you pray, forgive.
Before you quit, try.”
~ Ernest Hemingway

***

 

to all the veterans in

the world

I salute you.

Amazing Grace

I will praise the Lord at all times. I will constantly speak his praises. I will boast only in the Lord; let all who are helpless take heart. Ps 34:1-2 (NLT)

Are you there God? It’s me, Joni.

Have you ever felt like your voice is echoing in a tunnel and no one is hearing? I’ve never really felt like that because I always knew God was listening, as He was talking to me along the journey of Stevens blindness, He spoke, I listened. I never really asked anything of myself, I just kept praying for everyone else in need.

The power of prayer is simply amazing. When I send out a prayer for someone or say to a person, I’ll pray for you, those are not empty words that stop at just words, I really sincerely pray for that person. I won’t go into the amount of prayers I’ve said or for who, but I can say that the persons prayed for come back to me and say, “I FELT your prayers.” All Glory to God.

So when I send a prayer into the tunnel, it doesn’t have an echo, because of all the prayers it is bumping into. The tunnel is full of prayers and when I say, “Are you there God, it’s me, Joni,” I know God will hear my prayer. He forgets no one.

People think I’m crazy because when they ask or tell me to do something, I have a tendency to say, “I’ll see what God says,” or I’ll wait to hear what God wants me to do.” and if He says wait, I wait, patiently, sometimes in deep pain, struggling, gasping for air, but I wait, and God answers in a resounding brilliance of rainbow colors.

I don’t mean He puts a rainbow in the sky for me, (although sometimes he has done that.) But He layers his answer in a colorful rainbow that only I hear, and obey. ROYGBIV
Red-- “REST my child for you are weary”, Orange-- “OPEN your heart and let the Light shine through.” Yellow -- “YOU are my child and never forgotten.”, Green -- “GRACE from your Lord and Savior surrounds you.” Blue -- “BE one with all that I AM.” Indigo -- “I am the Lord your God.”, Violet -- “ VALUE all that you are!”

Then He adds... “You are not alone.” And then gives me a hug that is like no other warmth of the universe surrounding me.

How can you ignore that? Maybe you don’t hear Him? Maybe you’ve been so busy with reading the scripture, you never really gave it a chance when it came to actually living the scripture. I am not perfect by no means, I am a sinner like each and every one of you and think myself nothing more, but I strive, every day I wake up, and listen for the rainbow, I strive to make my day full of Glory to God.

I rose today, along with the glorious sun and felt, His Amazing Grace...
...was blind...but now... I SEE!!!

Thank you Lord, for prayers answered! Praise be your name!

NOTE: We are nearing a holiday, where people are lonely and need our prayer. Thanksgiving and Christmas should be a time for celebration and giving thanks. This weeks posts will be for the needy, the less fortunate, the ones no one cares for, but Jesus.

Matt. 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.