Dec 5, 2011

Pride vs Deficiencies

So let go, let God break the stained glass masquerade into pieces, and in exchange, receive a transparent heart.

It's natural human tendency to pretend we are strong and alright even though our inner world might be crashing down.

We want to cover, we want to hide. We try and strive to project a stainless image. We don't want others to see our blemishes. It will be worse if we try so hard to be a Jekyll and Hyde. Sometimes we are just trying too hard, that we hate ourselves for failing, for messing up, when our weaknesses resurfaced. We want people to see the good side of us, trying to be perfect.

Pride is torturing us, little do we realize we have become a slave to our own pride. Pride is drifting us too far that comments are unacceptable. Advises are intolerable. We become defensive. We think our own reflection and evaluation are more accurate. We misquote the Scripture to say " Who are you to judge me? " It's our pride against our very own deficiencies.

John Newton threw a good statement there. Open our eyes and see the truth. Humility takes us to greater heights. We ought to remind ourselves we are not seeking the approval from men but God alone. God knows our inner self, our failures, our weaknesses, our deficiencies.

I learn not to be ashamed of my our weaknesses and incapability. As a traveler, I learn to admit "Erm, I can't do it." "Sorry I don't know about that." I am willing to learn.

How can I learn the value of humility that Christ has when I only allow the world to see my strength and not my weakness? How can I ever enhance and strengthen my deficiencies if others are not allowed to intervene?

I learned the hard way in my teenage years that it's frustratingly tiring to keep covering up, pretending that I am better, I am alright, I am strong when I am not.

Learning to say Sorry or to admit our Weakness isn't easy, but by saying that, we are one step towards humility and one step away from pride. He gives grace to the humble, opposes the proud.

The Scripture assures us that God's mercy and grace is new every single morning.

"Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." ~ Lamentations 3:22-23

2 Corinthians 12:10 - "That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

I realize how strong my God is when I am weak. When there is less of me, I see more of God.

Why then, shall we live like a stained glass masquerade?

So let go, let God break the stained glass masquerade into pieces, and in exchange, receive a transparent heart.

It doesn't matter if the glass is stained because if we are crowned with the helmet of humility, together with the strong support from the brothers and sisters in Christ and working through Christ, we can remove the stains. Man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart. So what counts?

Therefore, we rejoice for we have a great high priest where mercy, grace and help can be found. ♥


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