Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch tears away … [Read more...] about The Heart of Reproach
pride
The Prayer of the Kingdom
“When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will … [Read more...] about The Prayer of the Kingdom
The Subtle Seduction of Pride
"After this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth." (Job 3:1) There is a subtle difference between mourning and self-pity. Whereas mourning is an emotional response to loss, when we wallow in our mourning for too long, it can easily and subtly devolve into self-pity. Self-pity is the subtlest and I dare say the most egregious manifestation of pride that we can … [Read more...] about The Subtle Seduction of Pride