Wrecked by Pride

There are wrecks, and then there are wrecks. There are autos flipped onto their roofs in the median strip, cars jammed under semis, ten-car pileups on icy winter roads.

But probably more often there are the fender-benders, the rear-enders, the side-swiping the guard rail, the taking out of a mailbox, or the loss of control that lands us in the ditch. Nobody’s hurt, we insist, as we climb from the vehicle. Just shook up, but we’ll be fine. No need to be checked over, we’ll just shake it off and send the car to the garage to be fixed by somebody skilled in collision repair. Maybe take a bit of a hit on our insurance premium, but it couldn’t be avoided.

Pride is always involving us in minor accidents, it seems. Like a set of bad brakes, it sends us into the person in front of us. Like a bald tire, it looses our grip on the narrow road as we take life’s curve too wide, too fast. Like a stuck gas pedal, it propels us forward when everything in us warns, Watch out! You need to slow down! Pride is the accident waiting to happen. It’s an often-undetected, even pre-inspected and stickered reason for the pile of minor wrecks we’ve left in the rearview mirror.

It takes many subtle forms: We’ve been defending our rights. We’ve been overworking to achieve (even in the church). We’ve been building an image that people keep scuffing. We’ve been holding out for our own clearly superior ideas, and on and on... And we haven’t stopped to realize that God never even authorized the use of His vehicle for this sort of thing.

“Come to me,” Jesus invited, “all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light” (Mt. 11:28-30 NLT).

Let me teach you, because I am humble… The heavier we load our frames and the faster we push the limits, the greater the wreck will be. But Jesus offers a perfectly-fitting yoke and a light burden… if we learn humility.

The humility that says I can’t do everything, and I’m not even supposed to. I don’t need to prove anything. I am more concerned about elevating those around me than promoting myself. I’m going to cultivate a thicker skin instead of taking offense at every slight. I’m not going to lobby for all that’s coming to me - I don’t deserve even as much as God’s given me. And I’m not going to ride His bumper; I’m just going to follow Him at His pace.

Pride is tricky. It pushes us into all sorts of bad driving habits, justified as “common practice,” and sets us on a collision course. So the next time you or I feel the yoke of service chafing or the burden of life weighing us down… it might be good to check for pride. A little humility often goes a long way toward lifting the heaviness from our hearts, and realigning the perfectly-crafted yoke we share with Jesus.