Nothing can heal you; your wound is fatal. All who hear the news about you clap their hands at your fall, for who has not felt your endless cruelty? – Nahum 3:19

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 10, 2017): Nahum 3

Arrogance is a problem, especially in this interconnected world. Arrogance says that I can go it alone. Arrogance does not produce a “me first” attitude. It produces a “me only” attitude. I have everything that I need to be successful, and so I don’t need you. Kings (and those who wished to be King) often seem to have struggled with this character defect. They can’t figure out how the puzzle pieces fit around them because, in their eyes, they are the only puzzle piece that matters.

Now, I am not saying that Kings, Queens, politicians, or any of the rest of us are not good at something. I am a big believer that every single one of us has something at which we can excel. And not only that, but that thing that we are good at has been placed in our lives so that we can use it. But while we all have incredible strengths, every single one of us also has incredible weaknesses. Building up where you are weak will only make you very average. But reinforcing where you are strong will make you exceptional. We need to leverage our strengths to be our very best.

But there is a fine line between knowing our strengths and being so filled with pride because of our strengths that we no longer understand where we need help. We need to use our strengths – but our strengths don’t come from us – they are given to us by God. This is why pride is seen as a sin and humility as a strength. The humble person can fit the puzzle pieces presented by others into a beautiful whole. The prideful and arrogant just can’t do that.

Nahum prophesies to Nineveh, a country with a number of strengths, but also a country filled pride and arrogance.  Pride makes them believe that they don’t have to listen – to God, to other countries, or to anyone else. Nineveh and Assyria are the only puzzle pieces that matter. And therein lies the seed for their eventual fall.

Whenever we reach that spot in our lives, we are in trouble.  Our pride can override the things that we need to know to continue. In other words, we can have a fatal wound and never know it.  According to Nahum, This is the fate of Nineveh. Maybe, if there was someone else they could have bound the wound. But because the Assyria Empire stood alone, cruelly dealing with the other nations, there was no one left to bind the nation’s wound. They think they have everything under control – but the truth is that they don’t. J. R. R. Tolkien says it this way, “Not even the very wise can see all ends.” Pride blinds us to that truth and the future possibilities that we just can’t possibly see – but that others might see.

Go and use the strengths that God has given you today – make the most of them – but be careful that you don’t allow your pride to blind you. Remember, God is the owner of your strengths – he just lets you borrow them.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 2 Kings 21