One day I was making some dough with my two boys.  They loved poking holes in the rolled dough before it was to be baked.  They both had forks and were stabbing the rolled dough at furious speeds.  Those boys were having fun!  However, I had to make them pause and examine their work.  I asked them if their holes completely pierced the dough or if they were simply denting it.  Reluctantly, they admitted that their millions of holes were only dents.  The boys had to slow down and deliberately pierce through the dough. 

As we worked, we talked about the purpose of the holes.  If the holes don’t completely penetrate the dough, bubbles will form during baking.  Then the dough doesn’t rise and bake evenly.  You’ve probably seen this happen with pizzas, where a big bubble has pushed all the toppings off to its sides.  Or perhaps you have taken note of the evenly spaced holes in crackers.  The holes are there to keep the bubbles to a minimum.

The concept of piercing the dough completely has stuck in my mind to this day.  This is a physical reality, but it is also a spiritual reality.  The Bible speaks about yeast and dough.  Yeast is a symbol of sin, specifically pride.  Yeast is what causes dough to get puffed up so that it appears more than it actually is.  It breaks down the dough.  The bubbles are actually the result of decay.  Pride works just like yeast.

How do we fight pride?  First of all, we need to be in relationship with God, trusting Christ to lead and guide us.  He is the only One who has the ability to conquer pride and decay.  Secondly, we stab it.  We pierce it completely through.  It must be deliberate and intentional and thorough.  A few dents on the top won’t kill it. 

There are times when God humbles us, putting a fork in our pride and revealing our sin.  Other times we are aware of our pride and we need to put a fork in it; stabbing it dead.  We can’t gloss over it.  Call it out.  Confess it.  Meet it head on.  That’s the way to kill it.

It’s difficult.  Believe me, because I just failed at it.  My husband and I recently went on a road trip.  Before we left there were words and lack of words on both sides that caused significant strain.  It was rocky and snippy, but it didn’t come to a head until we were on our way.  I wanted to be anywhere but in that vehicle.  It was going to be a long four hours!  We stopped to get gas and grab some lunch to-go.  Our food was warm, but the atmosphere was ice cold.  I had a feeling that we should pray for our meal together.  I resisted.  There’s no way I wanted to pray with him then.  The feeling persisted.  I pushed it aside and convinced myself that praying on my own was fine.  Just fine.

That… that was pride.  We were both in the wrong but I didn’t want to claim my part in it.  What did I need to do?  Stab it with a fork!  I should have pierced it and called it what it was.  But I didn’t.  I glossed over it.  And now… now I’m airing out my dirty laundry before everyone.  I want to kill this pride.  Kill it dead.  So here I am, stabbing it now.  It’s late, but I’m going to meet it head on.

Let us be deliberate, intentional, and thorough.  Don’t gloss over your pride in a relationship or it will turn into a bubble.  This week, pay attention to any feelings of resistance in your relationships.  Is the aversion caused by your own pride?  Put a fork in it!  Stab it dead.  Completely.

Scriptures to permeate your thoughts this week:
Psalm 10:4; Proverbs 11:2; 13:10; 16:18; 29:23
Philippians 2:1-18
Matthew 16:5-12
1 Corinthians 5:6-13
Galatians 5:5-10