The Common Thread

This year's bible study committed to reading the bible in its entirety. This past week there has been a common thread as we plow our way through the book of II Chronicles. We have revisited King after King; some has prospered and then there are those who fell. What is the common thread “pride?” Throughout my life I have watched pride slither in like a venomous snake and change the course of a person’s life. The spirit of pride is subtle. It changes how we see ourselves and how we want others to see us. We put ourselves on the throne of our lives.

 II Chronicles 26:3-22 But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride lead to his downfall

Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king. He did what was right in the sight of the Lord and he sought God, and as long as he sought God he was successful. When he became powerful and his fame spread far and wide people helped him, nevertheless, it ceased when pride slither into his heart. Have you ever been in a situation where your pride did not allow you to step back and change directions? Unfornuately, for Uzziah it lead to the end of his Kingship.

Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:1

The saddest thing about Uzziah fall is that even when he was forewarned he yet fell. As Christian people how do we keep that spirit of pride at bay?

According to Romans 12:2, we must renew our minds. That starts with understanding where pride can lead us. It came topple a business, destroy families, end friendships and most importantly separate us for God. I am not saying we will not moment in our lives to be proud and yes, it is good to celebrate our successes.  But know this; God promotes and he demotes, whereever you are in life you did not get there alone.