E-mail: rogeralford1@gmail.com.
I heard a story the other day about the city slicker who visited a farm for the very first time. He was fascinated by all he saw and had lots of questions for the farmer.
“Why doesn’t that cow over there have horns,” he asked.
“Well, some breeds of cattle don’t grow horns,” the farmer explained. “Others do and we cut them off so they’re not a danger to other cattle or to people. Sometimes, when they’re small calves, we put de-horning paste on them and they dissolve. The reason that particular cow doesn’t have horns is because it’s a horse.”
The truth is, if we’re unfamiliar with rural living, there are lots of things we don’t know or understand. By the same token, if we’re unfamiliar with city living, there are lots of things we don’t know or understand. And, with human nature being what it is, pride can well up in us simply because we know something the other person doesn’t.
That’s not just a city versus country thing. Pride can well up in us because we have something our neighbor doesn’t, no matter where we live.
Oh, but we must remember God hates pride. He warns us, Pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall, Proverbs 16:18.
I was driving to church the other day on the outskirts of Atlanta and was struck by the ginormous homes along the way. With so many professional sports teams, Atlanta has a great number of highly paid athletes who can afford multi-million dollar homes. Atlanta also has highly paid businessmen working for major Fortune 500 companies who can afford multi-million dollar homes. Yet, I’ve found those people aren’t puffed up with pride.
In all honesty, the most prideful attitudes I’ve encountered have been in less well-to-do communities where people have become puffed up because their four-bedroom homes are a little bigger than the neighbor’s down the road, because their pickup truck sits higher than the neighbor’s down the road, because their car is a little newer, or because their lawn is a little greener, or because their cows are a little fatter.
Pride gives us a feeling of superiority. It convinces us that we’re better than others and even that we have no need for the Lord because we can handle things ourselves.
What we need to keep in mind always is that God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble, James 4:6.
Knowing the difference between a cow and a horse doesn’t make us better than someone else. It just shows we grew up on a farm. Knowing how to maneuver in a big city subway system doesn’t make us better than someone else. It just shows we grew up in the city.
Let’s lose the prideful attitudes that cause us to lift ourselves up, and let’s lift up Jesus, the only One who is worthy.