We all have it. From time to time, it comes out in ugly ways. And as parents, we see it in our kids. But if we’re honest, we know they probably learned it from us. That’s where the idea for this talking about pride cartoon came from.
One moment, we’re doing pretty good with handling pride. The next moment, we believe we are royalty and deserve the red carpet treatment. That’s just human nature, isn’t it? We all believe we deserve to be king or queen.
Greed is not exclusive to the rich or poor. Yet, I see a connection between greed and poverty. It may not have anything to do with physical wealth.
Several months back, I read an article that stated upper-middle-class and upper-class families were hoarding wealth because they feared it could disappear at any time. Burglaries and theft occur in poorer neighborhoods because someone feels they deserve more than their neighbor and feel justified in taking it from them.
At the same time, I have felt encouraged and emboldened when a story comes out about a generous person. The story may focus on a rich individual, but also may feature a middle-class or poor person that gave out of the generosity of their heart.
Greed is less about the pursuit of having enough and more about a scarcity mindset that makes the person feel justified in taking from another.
Greedy people try to get rich quick but don’t realize they’re headed for poverty.
Proverbs 28:22 (NLT)
Physical exercise makes us stronger. When we run a distance, or lift weights, the resistance causes our muscles to strengthen. It prepares us for when we face a physical challenge and gives us strength under pressure.
“If you fail under pressure, your strength is too small.”
Proverbs 24:10 NLT
Mental and spiritual exercises do something similar. When we feed our mind and spirit, when we make ourselves do the hard work, it will help us when we face bigger challenges.
Does that mean we love exercise? Hardly! Self discipline can be difficult, especially when we have weak areas that we know needs to be strengthened. When we haven’t been exercising for a while, and we discover how weak we’ve become in such a short time, it’s humiliating and discouraging.
And when conditions aren’t optimal, it can be even harder. We may try to job, but the weather is nasty. Then there are the times we are exercising our minds, but we are tempted to turn on the TV and watch some mindless program. Maybe the kids are loud and demand our attention. Self discipline isn’t easy, is it?
But the long-term benefits far outweigh the short-term challenges. When we set a long-term goal, it helps us get over the short-term reluctance.
Few of us are in optimal shape physically, mentally and spiritually. We may be overwhelmed in one or multiple areas. It’s okay! Choose one aspect to focus on today. Start with small steps and know that we will improve in the long-term. Here are some suggestions to tory today.
Any of these could be useful when we face pressure. And who doesn’t eventually need strength under pressure?
Editor’s Note: I originally published this blog on October 6, 2015. I revamped and updated it for timeliness and comprehensiveness.
We need a lot of wisdom these days. It seems that there are plenty of problems and very few solutions. So how do we discern wise voices from foolish ones? What is the wise known for?
“The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive.”
Proverbs 16:9 (NLT)
In this information age, we are deluged with facts and opinions. It can be very difficult to discern truth from fiction. We need effective communication more than ever before. Yet, that appears to be in short supply.
There is no lack of hysterical voices spouting opinions that stir our emotions. Angry, offended voices are everywhere. Instead of more effective communication, we get more emotional voices.
Today’s proverb reminds me to be very careful of the voices I listen to.
We can do better by considering if the voices we allow into our minds are wise voices, or merely meant to inflame.
“Wise people treasure knowledge,
Proverbs 10:14 (NLT)
but the babbling of a fool invites disaster.”
We live in an age that has a ton of information, but so much of it can be false. We can do research only to find that the source isn’t reliable, or isn’t possible to discover where it came from. How can we treasure knowledge when there is so much babbling going on?
Knowledge is worth pursuing in any field. It can end up being quite a treasure.