Before the Fall
Theme of the Week: Who's Number One?
Howard Swann
Monday, March 1, 2004
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Key Bible Verse: Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall (Proverbs 16:18). Bonus reading:Proverbs 16:1–5
Before he launched his construction project, a neighbor asked if my storage building was expensive and difficult to assemble.
"Thrifty and easy," I told him. "But make sure you buy the manufacturer's foundation, which is sold separately."
"Thanks," he said, "but I'm gonna build that part myself."
When he finished, the building looked great! But afterward, the structure began gradually leaning forward. His do-it-yourself foundation was crumbling. Driving by several months later, I saw the building had collapsed. I laughed—until I remembered a foundation I once built.
My life was "successful." But, like my neighbor's foundation, this success was built with a haughty spirit that overruled wise counsel. I was ignorant about how insidiously pride elevates us for a fall. After collapsing into God's arms, I finally grasped this truth.
I shared my large piece of "humble pie" with my neighbor. Since then he's replaced the building and, years later, it's still standing on the best possible foundation. So am I.
—Howard Swann
My Response: How do I handle suggestions and criticism from others?
Thought to Apply: Pride is tasteless, colorless, and sizeless. Yet it is the hardest thing to swallow.
—August B. Black
Copyright © 2004 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.
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Lord, help me to remember your ultimate example of humility. May this example allow me to put others' considerations ahead of my own.
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