In
President Ezra Taft Benson’s talk Beware of Pride, President Benson
warns us about the destructive tendencies of pride and the damage that
is done by pride. He says, “The central feature of pride is
enmity-enmity toward God and enmity toward our fellowmen. Enmity means
‘hatred toward, hostility to, or a state of opposition.’ It is the power
by which Satan wishes to reign over us.” I had never thought about
pride in this way. Pride is like a destructive missile launched for
destruction. If we do not shoot it down, it can, and often times will,
destroy us.
I have always thought of pride as self-centeredness, cockiness, and a sense of being better than others. I had never thought of pride in terms of my relationship with God and willingness to obey and honor Him. President Benson tells us that enmity means being rebellious, hard-hearted, stiff-necked, unrepentant, puffed up, easily offended, and a sign seeker. As I thought about this definition of pride I began to reflect back upon my journey and choices in life and how pride has negatively affected me and the course of my life.
I was sixteen years old when I began to question the truthfulness of the gospel. It was important to me that I look around at other religions and investigate to see if The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was the right one for me. I asked my mom if I could begin attending other churches with some of my friends. She vehemently disagreed with me going to other churches and told me that as long as I lived in her house I would attend church with her. Without pride I would have humbly accepted her answer but being a stubborn, prideful teenager, I decided to move out of my parents’ home instead.
I moved in with my boyfriend and quit attending church altogether. In a few short months I was pregnant and was expecting our first child. I began feeling repentant and humbled. As an expectant mother who wanted to do right by my child and teach him of God, I began feeling pulled back to church. I attended church for a few weeks and very quickly I realized that people were looking at me as I walked by and whispering and talking about me in the hallways at church. Without pride I would have turned my sad, hurt, and offended heart over to the Savior but being a prideful and offended young woman, I quit attending church altogether. I spent ten years being inactive in living the gospel. Without pride I would have turned myself toward the Lord and asked Him to help strengthen me to endure the judgment of others and to guide my life but being defiant, rebellious, and justified in my stiff-neckedness, I remained distant from the gospel.
I married my boyfriend and after the birth of our second child my marriage and family became intensely unhappy and stressful. I could sense that without serious intervention, my family was in danger of breaking up. I began feeling that it was my responsibility as a wife and mother to be an example to my family and most importantly to teach my children they were children of God. I began to humble myself and to do some soul searching. I began to pray again for the first time in many, many years and ask for direction and guidance. It didn’t happen overnight but I did make my way back to church with my children. My children and I have been active members of the Church for 13 years. My marriage and family have remained intact and are better and stronger than ever! My husband is still not a member of the Church but he has seen the good that living by the Church’s teachings has done in my life and in the lives of our children and how happy it makes us and he supports us in our church attendance and church callings.
I can see in retrospect, an almost immediate change in our lives as a direct result of my willingness to submit to God and His will. As soon as I began to let go of my pride and submit to my Heavenly Father and to welcome His love back into my life, the happiness of my home and family began to improve. I know that pride has nearly destroyed me and my relationship with not only my husband and children, but more importantly, with my Heavenly Father. I am thankful that I have been welcomed back into our Father’s fold through His grace and charity. I am thankful that I have been able to shake off the shackles of pride in order to try to live my life in accordance with the gospel and in keeping my sacred covenants. As I took inventory of my most destructive prideful phases of life I realize how much happier I am as I try not to be prideful. I thank my Heavenly Father! My life has been richly blessed!
I have always thought of pride as self-centeredness, cockiness, and a sense of being better than others. I had never thought of pride in terms of my relationship with God and willingness to obey and honor Him. President Benson tells us that enmity means being rebellious, hard-hearted, stiff-necked, unrepentant, puffed up, easily offended, and a sign seeker. As I thought about this definition of pride I began to reflect back upon my journey and choices in life and how pride has negatively affected me and the course of my life.
I was sixteen years old when I began to question the truthfulness of the gospel. It was important to me that I look around at other religions and investigate to see if The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was the right one for me. I asked my mom if I could begin attending other churches with some of my friends. She vehemently disagreed with me going to other churches and told me that as long as I lived in her house I would attend church with her. Without pride I would have humbly accepted her answer but being a stubborn, prideful teenager, I decided to move out of my parents’ home instead.
I moved in with my boyfriend and quit attending church altogether. In a few short months I was pregnant and was expecting our first child. I began feeling repentant and humbled. As an expectant mother who wanted to do right by my child and teach him of God, I began feeling pulled back to church. I attended church for a few weeks and very quickly I realized that people were looking at me as I walked by and whispering and talking about me in the hallways at church. Without pride I would have turned my sad, hurt, and offended heart over to the Savior but being a prideful and offended young woman, I quit attending church altogether. I spent ten years being inactive in living the gospel. Without pride I would have turned myself toward the Lord and asked Him to help strengthen me to endure the judgment of others and to guide my life but being defiant, rebellious, and justified in my stiff-neckedness, I remained distant from the gospel.
I married my boyfriend and after the birth of our second child my marriage and family became intensely unhappy and stressful. I could sense that without serious intervention, my family was in danger of breaking up. I began feeling that it was my responsibility as a wife and mother to be an example to my family and most importantly to teach my children they were children of God. I began to humble myself and to do some soul searching. I began to pray again for the first time in many, many years and ask for direction and guidance. It didn’t happen overnight but I did make my way back to church with my children. My children and I have been active members of the Church for 13 years. My marriage and family have remained intact and are better and stronger than ever! My husband is still not a member of the Church but he has seen the good that living by the Church’s teachings has done in my life and in the lives of our children and how happy it makes us and he supports us in our church attendance and church callings.
I can see in retrospect, an almost immediate change in our lives as a direct result of my willingness to submit to God and His will. As soon as I began to let go of my pride and submit to my Heavenly Father and to welcome His love back into my life, the happiness of my home and family began to improve. I know that pride has nearly destroyed me and my relationship with not only my husband and children, but more importantly, with my Heavenly Father. I am thankful that I have been welcomed back into our Father’s fold through His grace and charity. I am thankful that I have been able to shake off the shackles of pride in order to try to live my life in accordance with the gospel and in keeping my sacred covenants. As I took inventory of my most destructive prideful phases of life I realize how much happier I am as I try not to be prideful. I thank my Heavenly Father! My life has been richly blessed!
No comments:
Post a Comment