A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit. (Proverbs 29:23)
If you were to give your life a direction, would you say you are increasing or decreasing?
Pride and arrogance will bring even the most educated and connected person low.
King Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs, and as you read through its pages, you can see that he often discussed the damage that he had seen pride do in the lives of leaders.
He said that pride brings shame (Proverbs 11:2), that pride will give you no hope for the future (Proverbs 26:12) and even that pride will eventually destroy your life and cause you to fall (Proverbs 16:18). Pride will cause you to make bad decisions as you arrogantly refuse to listen to the advice and wise counsel of people God puts in your path or even from God Himself.
Pride can also cause someone to destroy their God-given relationships with stubborn attitudes, critical words, and competitive spirits.
Pride truly brings one low - far away from God and far away from others – to a solitary place of loneliness.
Solomon finished his thought by giving the antidote to pride: show honor with a humble spirit.
Romans 12:10 tells us that honor means we should prefer others above ourselves.
Honor shouldn’t be only for those in authority. Honor is something we should give freely to everyone as a representative of God’s Kingdom.
When prefer and honor others, we remind ourselves who we are as kingdom representatives and who God is as the Leader of our lives. Honoring others helps us understand how much God loves and cares for the people around us.
Practical Application – How can we display honor toward those around us? Is there a way you can show honor to someone in authority or a complete stranger today? Look for opportunities to act humbly by stepping out in honor.