Gentle Reader,
So it’s Pride Month.
Don’t worry. I’m not here to talk about sex, sexuality, or gender identity today. This might get some pushback, but I am weary of all such conversations. Reducing anyone’s identity or value in the world to their sexuality, whatever it is, has got to be among the most boring things we’ve chosen to do, wherever any of us falls on the spectrum of ideas. We are sex and gender obsessed, all of us. I wish we’d get over it.
As I write that, I imagine that some might think I am advocating for positions I am not. You should not be a jerk to anyone, period. You should not think yourself superior to anyone, period. It does not matter what your thoughts are on this topic. If you claim to follow Christ, then you must love others, period.
Anyway, really, I’ve just got this question: What if there’s a truth that we need to grasp over the next few weeks?
I believe that all truth, wherever you find it, comes from God. Anything true and right finds its ultimate source in the God who created truth and rightness. This means that we don’t have huddle in our little Christian corners and close ourselves off from the rest of the world. We can listen. We can observe. We can participate in the rhythms of life. We can leave what does not align with our convictions and gladly take what is good, wherever we find that good.
So I’m thinking about pride. And how that word and attitude is generally cast in negative terms, which isn’t wrong. Pride can be incredibly harmful. Pride disconnects us from God and from others. Pride keeps us from understanding that we are not the pinnacle, the best, the be-all and end-all. Pride blinds us to our own faults and flaws.
But there is such a thing as healthy pride. Correct pride. It’s connected to other attitudes like humility, contentment, and love.
I bought a frame for my clergy license, which lasts for only one year. In my denomination, it takes time to become ordained, which lasts for the rest of a person’s life. There are educational requirements and years of service required. While I have had moments of complaining about this process (as has everyone who has gone through it), I am ultimately thankful for it. The pastoral office/role is not one to enter into lightly. It’s not simply a job (though to be clear, there is nothing wrong with any other job and God can use anyone in any workplace). Clergy need to be people who are willing to learn and to serve in whatever ways the Church needs. A pastor cannot eschew accountability. So I’m okay with being year-to-year clergy at this point. It doesn’t bother me.
But I’ve never displayed my license until today, even though I’ve had two before this one. I thought I would be wrong to do so. Like having my license out on a shelf equals me bragging. I’ve had the same thought about my Master’s degree. If I put this out where people can see it, then I’m being prideful.
Do I think that others are being prideful when they display their licenses, degrees, or awards? No. That thought has never crossed my mind. In fact, I find it interesting to look at someone’s wall and see what they have been involved with.
I make the mistake of connecting humility to downplaying what God has empowered me to accomplish. I connect it to…almost apologizing for my existence. Maybe you do as well. That’s not humility. That’s self-loathing, and that’s not of God.
God institutes many celebrations throughout Scripture. God wants God’s people to enjoy things! We can say, “I worked hard for that. Thank you, God, for helping me every step of the way.” That’s healthy, correct pride. That is enjoying God, enjoying who God made you be, enjoying that thing that you got to do.
Are there pieces of paper that you have hidden away somewhere? Buy nice frames for them. Are there things that you enjoy doing, that you are good at doing, that you rarely talk about? Start talking about them. Slinking around and trying hide doesn’t honor God. Openly enjoying who God has made you to be and what God has made you to do, as God has set you free from the burden of sin and shame, that honors God.
Maybe that’s the truth we need to grasp this month.
GRACE AND PEACE ALONG THE WAY,
marie
Image Courtesy of Peter Conlan