The Proud Shove

While walking on the footpath this morning, my sons and I heard a warning "honk" from a cyclist who promptly whizzed by.  There wasn't much time to react.  Instinctively I moved towards the left, creating as much room as possible for the rider to pass on my right.  In doing so, I gently bumped into Abel and almost pushed him into the bushes!  As we walked and talked about how funny it would have been to see Abel dive headlong into the bushes and disappear, I was reminded of a time when that happened to my brother.  And it was totally my fault.

I recounted the story to my sons.  Since my parents were highly involved in church ministry, we always were among the first to arrive at church and the last to leave.  For years, my brother and I would religiously play football by ourselves or with friends before first service, between services, and after second service.  We literally wore out ball after ball playing touch football on the lawn, in a dirt lot, or on pavement.  My brother and I were never on the same team because that created an unfair advantage.  To have both of us paired on offense or defense meant an easy victory for us.  So quite often we were paired up guarding or rushing each other.  In case you don't know us, neither of us likes to lose.  Thinking back, it's amazing how civilised the games usually were considering our competitiveness and youthful pride.

One morning before the service when I was in my early teens, my brother Mat "beat" me on a long bomb over the top.  It was a perfect route, pass, and catch, the ball just sailing over my outstretched hand.  Mat brought down the over the shoulder catch for the touchdown.  I wasn't happy about being beaten.  So what did I do?  Just as his feet touched down on the concrete that marked the end zone, I gave him a small shove to the back.  It was touch football, right?  It wasn't a big shove, but with his forward momentum it was enough to send him sprawling headlong into a large juniper bush.  He completely disappeared.  In retrospect, it's a good thing that bush was there because it kept Mat from falling down a sheer drop five meters to a concrete path.

Oh no, I thought to myself.  I felt bad.  Because he didn't emerge immediately from the bush triumphantly with the ball, I knew something was wrong.  I didn't feel bad about the extra "love" at the end of the play, but I knew Mat was going to be mad - really mad.  He knew what I did, and he knew I did it on purpose.  You see, all I could think about in that moment was how my bad decision was going to affect me.  After calling into the bush a few times, Mat scrambled out of the bush fuming and thankfully unhurt.  My pride had taken a hit being beaten by my little brother (who always could hold his own and was virtually equal or better than me in physical activities growing up) and so I dealt him a blow.  We made up and the game continued.  I am blessed to have a brother who showed me grace that day.  "Shoving Mat into that shrub was the result of my pride and selfishness," I told the boys.  "Pride will always make you do things you later regret.  In that split-second it felt good to give him a shove, but it's something I have always regretted because of my proud and selfish attitude.  I should have congratulated him and been a good sport." 

Pride is an awful sin that has led to much more than a kid being shoved headlong into bushes, but the destruction of relationships, marriages, to fights, injuries, and bitter grudges.  Pride causes us to hurt people we love.  Pride is the primary sin of Satan (1 Tim. 3:6), and it keeps men from seeking God.  Psalm 10:4 reads, "The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts."  Pride is painted in a positive light in many cultures today.  People take pride in all sorts of things.  But when we lift ourselves up with pride, we only set ourselves up for a fall.  Proverbs 29:23 says, "A man's pride will bring him low, but the humble in spirit will retain honour."  It is only through being born again by grace through faith in Christ that we can be free from the shackles of pride.  Under the illusion of freedom we are actually bound by pride (Ps. 73:6).  When we embrace humility, we don't need to fire away that hurtful parting shot, fight for our rights, or shove someone in the back.  Walking in pride is a means of sowing to the flesh, and it will always breed corruption.  Thank God that He has given us the example of Jesus, who not only shows us the way but places within us the power to walk in it through the Holy Spirit.

I'm sorry for shoving you into that bush, Mat.  But I'm not sorry for the lesson God taught me through it! :)