‘Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. ‘ Ephesians 4:2(NLT)
‘Pride leads to conflict; those who take advice are wise.’ Proverbs 13:10(NLT)
“He’s such a narcissist.”
You’ve probably heard the term narcissist used to describe someone lately. It’s a word that’s come up more and more frequently in recent days. It’s a term that originates from Greek mythology, referring to the story of a young man named Narcissus, who was so handsome that he fell in love with himself. But in the end, his self-absorption caused him to believe he was too good for anyone, and so he ended up living lonely and isolated all the days of his life.
You may not know this, but this Greek tale influenced an official mental diagnosis which is currently called Narcissistic Personality Disorder. It’s only diagnosed in a tiny percentage of the general population, but it refers to people who have traits such as an ongoing sense of entitlement, an exaggerated self-appraisal, a pervasive self-centeredness, and a lack of empathy and interest in others.
I don’t know about you, but in reading that list one thing becomes clear: we all carry a little bit of Narcissus inside of us, we just call him by another name: pride. God’s word refers to pride over 60 times in Scripture. And often, it’s followed by terrible things such as devastation, death, and destruction. Pride is also the number one thing that impacts our relationships because “where there is strife, there is pride” (Proverbs 13:13). The two will always go hand in hand.
In order for us to combat pride, we have to alter our ego and choose humility. We’ve got to learn to let go of the polished picture we have of ourselves and instead see ourselves for who we really are: sinners in desperate need of grace. Because it’s so much easier to see the flaws of others and all the while completely miss our own. For a relationship to have any hope of thriving, we need to learn to let go of our pride in exchange for something greater—humility.
Question for Reflection: What is a recent example of how pride has impacted my ability to love well?
Today’s Prayer: Jesus, fill me with humility. Give me eyes to see myself as I really am: a sinner saved by Your powerful grace. Amen.
from Choosing Marriage: 7 Choices For Healthy Relationships by Debra K. Fileta