Email
Print
Letter to Editor
SharePride can be a dangerous thing
By John Neufeld - Burns Lake Lakes District News
Published: September 30, 2008 11:00 PM
Updated: October 01, 2008 11:08 AM
As a young teen I once boasted that no one could read in public better than I could. Not long afterward I was scared to death to be called on to read even the shortest of paragraphs, out loud, in class. When asked to read, my heart would start pounding and I'd be hyperventilating---gasping for air. Of course, I was greatly humiliated---every time.
There's a proverb in the Bible that defines my experience. "Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall" (Proverbs 16:18). I fell so hard that it took me years to get over my anxiety. And, ever since I recovered, I've always known that it's only by the grace of God that I'm able to do any public speaking. I learned an important lesson. Pride isn't worth it.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, also had a problem with pride. He ruled the greatest empire of the world, at that time, and began to think that his success was due to his great wisdom and capabilities.
At one point, God gave him an ominous dream, which Daniel interpreted for him, in which he was warned to forsake his pride and recognize that it was the Most High who had blessed him with such power. But, he didn't humble himself in spite of the warning.
About a year later, he fell---big time. He went insane and was chased out of the palace to live like an animal for seven years. "He ate grass like a cow...his hair was as long as eagle's feathers and his nails were like bird's claws" (Daniel 4:33). After the seven years had passed, about which he had been warned, he looked up to heaven in all humility and was now willing to recognize that the Most High had been the one who had given him his power and position in the first place.
Instantly his sanity and his kingdom were restored to him. His advisers and officers sought him out, and he was reestablished as head of his kingdom, with even greater honor than before. Later he said, "My sanity returned, and I praised and worshiped the Most High and honored the one who lives forever. His rule is everlasting, and his kingdom is eternal...Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and glorify and honor the King of heaven. All his acts are just and true and he is able to humble those who are proud" (Daniel 4:34-37).
Old Neb learned an important lesson the hard way. So did I. Pride is a dangerous thing!
To share a response, contact John at johnbneufeld@hotmail.com, phone 692-7949, or write a letter to the editor.
