Watched “War Room” again, and I was again inspired to be either hot or cold, but not lukewarm. I choose hot! May I not be a stumbling block to others because of my spiritual condition (lukewarm is a big turn-off to lost people; it’s called hypocrisy).

3 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the LORD tests the heart.

From yesterday:
Chaste- Virtuous, undefiled, stainless, kept. Thoughts lead to actions. God says for us to guard our hearts. Thoughts, hearts/feelings, actions–they’re all connected!

There are quite a few areas that we humans are susceptible to sin: Entitlement, Lust, Pride, Vanity, Impatience, Selfishness, Sloth, Anger, Spite, Rage, Hate, Gluttony, Fear. We looked at Entitlement and Lust yesterday; today, we look at Pride, Vanity and Impatience.

Pride– There is good pride and bad pride. Good pride is rejoicing in another person’s victories, achievements, or place in life (like, a child or grandchild); it always has to do with love for that person and wanting the best for that person. “Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.” Romans 12:10. Bad pride is at the expense of someone else. We measure our goodness or abilities by comparing ourselves to others and seeing ourselves as better. God loves all His children and prospective children, and He takes exception to those who look down on them. Both James (the younger half-brother of Jesus and pastor of First Church, Jerusalem) and Peter quoted this proverb: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” Proverbs 3:34, James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5. The reference is to a boxer squaring off against an opponent. DON’T TRY TO GO A ROUND WITH THE LORD! We must remember, “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than [or before] yourselves.” Philippians 2:3.

Vanity– “Vanity, vanity! All is vanity!” Ecclesiastes 1:2. When Solomon said it, he really meant “difficult to understand.” When we say vanity, we mean conceitedness. There is a good bit of pride mixed in with vanity. We must not think too highly of  ourselves. In fact, Paul warns the Corinthians, “If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” 1 Corinthians 10:12. We must measure ourselves by the grace given us by remembering that grace is given and needed because we don’t deserve it. We bring nothing to God’s table of grace except our humble hearts. Paul redirects our attention from our outward appearance to our hearts, “Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing. ⁹ I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, ¹⁰ but with good deeds [of obedience], appropriate for women who profess to worship God.” 

Impatience– The lack of patience. When we become impatient, we lose God’s perspective on the matter: We get sharp with our words, we take matters into our own hands, and we force situations beyond the Spirit’s leadership. In other words, we SIN! Patience is a discipline, so impatience is a lack of discipline. What happens when we have no discipline? “A person’s own folly leads to their ruin, yet their heart rages against the Lord.” Proverbs 19:3. Learning that discipline is good and worth striving for is the first step in leading a disciplined life. Sounds kinda simple, but it’s true. We must decide that it’s worth having before we will work for it. Here is a banner verse for the impatient person, “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Ephesians 4:2. Want to be like Christ? Be patient.

Let’s not be lukewarm about these human tendencies. Let’s be humble with each other, modest in our dress, talk, and actions, and live disciplined lives, not going off half-cocked, but waiting for the LORD’s instruction. Let’s stay close to our SOURCE: JESUS!

Abba, these tendencies are difficult to overcome. In fact, they are impossible without Your Spirit giving us first the desire to overcome them and then the power to do it. Make it so, LORD Jesus, make it so. Amen.