W08 Beware of Pride

This week I had an opportunity to revisit one of my favorite talks given by Ezra Taft Benson, a former prophet and president of my church (Links to an external site.). The talk was on pride and all of the ways that it is manifest in our lives and can affect our relationships with self and others. Some of the topics he touched on were disobedience, selfishness, and contention. 

One of my favorite quotes from his talk was this:

Pride is a sin that can readily be seen in others but is rarely admitted in ourselves. Most of us consider pride to be a sin of those on the top, such as the rich and the learned, looking down at the rest of us. There is, however, a far more common ailment among us—and that is pride from the bottom looking up. It is manifest in so many ways, such as faultfinding, gossiping, backbiting, murmuring, living beyond our means, envying, coveting, withholding gratitude and praise that might lift another, and being unforgiving and jealous.

As I read this, I thought about the times when I can find a hundred things wrong with my husband and none with myself.  It's easy to feel frustration or impatience with what we think are someone else's imperfections. Those thoughts and feelings will grow exponentially if they are given the space and time to grow. I remember one time I was talking to someone about some of my husbands "shortcomings". He said to me: Have you ever done (whatever annoying thing I had mentioned)? I said yes, of course. He wondered what made it any different for me than my husband. It was a good life lesson on being as patient with others as I am with myself.  It was quite humbling! ha!  

President Benson also said this: Pride adversely affects all our relationships—our relationship with God and His servants, between husband and wife, parent and child, employer and employee, teacher and student, and all mankind. Our degree of pride determines how we treat our God and our brothers and sisters. Christ wants to lift us to where He is. Do we desire to do the same for others?

This is a great question for all of us to reflect on, especially as it pertains to our spouse and children. Do I desire to life others and bring them to Christ? Do I show them that in the way that I treat them?

I loved the grapefruit analogy in Goddards book. I can relate to being the wife listing off small offenses and things that bug her. My husband would say the same thing if he was asked what bothers him about me. Nothing. And as romantic as that sounds, it has very little to do with me and everything to do with the kind of man my husband really is.