Seven Deadly Sins and Your MarriageSample

Pride

For me, staying away from pride takes a gut check. It is a time-out with just me and God. It’s when I stop everything else and focus on Him. It’s me listening to my Creator.  Really listening. It’s something that I have to do.  

There are so many other voices that tell me nice things. There are the people I counsel who are grateful for the help they receive. There are the people who read my books or blogs or other things that I write and tell me how these made a difference for them.  Then there are emails and podcast comments and other things that are usually complimentary. My pride comes when I begin to believe that I really did all of the above on my own. The truth is that all of these accolades are really for God because without Him I truly could do nothing.  

At the end of every day, I walk in our home and find a wife that sees me as I am. The nice things people write and say about me mean nothing to her if she does not see me unselfishly loving her and helping build our marriage. The gut check comes when I begin to believe the lie that I did it all myself. It comes when I see my pride getting in the way of everything God tells me is important. My pride has no place in my life or in my marriage. It never works in either place.

Today’s Challenge: 

How can pride affect a relationship in a negative way?

Going Deeper:

1. What are some of the “good sides” of pride?

2. As men, how can pride affect our marriages?

3. As women, how can pride affect our marriages?

4. What are ways that we are vulnerable to putting ourselves in the center instead of God?