Pride is often a terrible vice

I had negotiated the meeting with a well-known speaker and successful business leader.

I had invited him to lunch, a small, smart English pub nestled in rolling hills. I hoped that as a young leader, he would impart wisdom and guidance.

I must confess I was honoured and excited. His gleaming silver sports car roared and pulled up; I marvelled at the horsepower. He looked impressive in his blue Italian tailored suit and a silk tie, truly an image of success — a leader in his field.

Within minutes, I could tell that he was confused, asking how I managed to get an appointment. I explained I wanted to buy him lunch and gain from his wisdom.

What unfolded was awkward; he was not attentive. He seemed to gaze down at me from his high tower of pride. I paid the bill, and he was gone within 30 minutes, and my note pad was quite empty.

Leaders and politicians who exhibit pride are particularly worrying. Pride is a terrible vice.

Pride hinders, obstructs marriages, families, creates friction and arguments in close relationships; it cripples creativity and eliminates personal growth. And it thwarts our relationship with God.

The brilliant academic, writer and apologist C.S. Lewis pointed out the danger of pride. The Oxford professor called it the “Great Sin.” In his brilliant book, Mere Christianity, Lewis said, “There is one vice of which no man in the world is free; which everyone in the world loathes when they see it in others; and of which hardly any people, except some Christians, ever imagine that they are guilty themselves. There is no fault which we are more unconscious of in ourselves, and the more we have it in ourselves, the more we dislike it in others.”

Chuck Colson, Special Counsel to U.S. President Richard Nixon, explains how he soared to power and fame.

He was bursting with pride as he walked in and out of the office of the most powerful man in the world any time he wanted. That most powerful man was looking for assistance from him, and Colson’s heart and head swelled with pride.

That was when he became involved in the Watergate affair of the Nixon administration. Colson soon found himself condemned and a criminal serving time in a prison cell. He was so humiliated that he turned his gaze to faith and Christianity.

He still admits that the worst, most humiliating experience in his life was the best thing that ever happened to him. Colson is unique as he embraced humility and took a good look in the mirror.

As Jesus said, in Luke 18:14, “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

When I think back to my lunch meeting, I remember the character, not the shiny car.