Posted by Do you ever have one of those moments where you think to yourself “Ugh, I suck”? Me too.
The other day I had one of these moments when a friend texted a group of us asking us to pray for a job she had applied for that day. When I saw what the job was, my first thought was “I could do that job better than her, I should apply for it too!”
Really, Sarah, really?
I absolutely adore this friend and I long for her to get this job. I want her to be able to get paid for her skills and point people to Christ while doing it. This really is the perfect job for her and yet I decided that I wanted to try and steal it. I wanted the spotlight on me and, for a minute, I thought of myself as “the better writer”. Oh, arrogant heart of mine!
“The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil
and perverted speech I hate.” Proverbs 8:13 (ESV)
It’s amazing how quickly we can go from loving God and loving others to being a complete jerk, even if it’s only in our minds. Thankfully I didn’t act on this fleeting thought but it spotlighted some serious flaws lurking below the surface that needed to be addressed.
What do we do when the arrogance monster rears its ugly head? Because, even if we like to deny it, it’s sure to strike again, usually when we least expect it. Here are my suggestions:
Meditate on Truth.
The Bible reveals to us those jacked up parts of our hearts. It’s that two-edged sword that tears through our faulty thinking and the lies we believe (Hebrews 4:12) and points us back to love and grace and truth. But we don’t know that our thinking is faulty until we set it next to truth. By meditating regularly on God’s Word we can identify those things, replace them, and renew our minds (Romans 12:2).
Be Self Aware.
We can easily spend our days going through the motions without thinking much and end up never taking the time to truly check in with ourselves. We can get so caught up in everything else going on in our lives that we overlook who we are, what we believe, and who we’re becoming. This is a dangerous place to be in and can quickly lead us down an unpleasant road. When was the last time that you took a minute to check in with you?
Respond Quickly.
I could’ve easily allowed this idea to pass by me. I could’ve shrugged it off as “not a big deal”. It was a fleeting thought that I could’ve left unchallenged, but I decided to respond to it. I attacked the thought itself. I didn’t let it fester, but I took it captive (2 Corinthians 10:5), I didn’t let it continue to grow. Then I prayed for this friend and this job she so desperately desired.
I don’t share this story with you because I am a shining example of the Christian life—I don’t have words to accurately describe the chasm between me and perfection. We truly couldn’t be further from each other if we tried. But I am growing and learning day by day and I hope you can say the same.
I’m thankful that God and others are patient with me. Thankfully, perfection isn’t the goal, progress is.
How do you handle the arrogance monster when it decides to strike again?
What’s your current goal: perfection or progress?
To go Deeper: Read Switch on Your Brain, Present Over Perfect
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Work in Progress 