Pride (Lesson 8)

Goddard's chapter 4 in his book, "Drawing Heaven into Your Marriage," really hit home with me this week. I am ashamed to admit it, but there have been too many discussions (arguments), in our marriage when I can not see what the problem is because in my opinion, my point of view is obviously right and if my husband would just stop and see things from my viewpoint surely he would agree. I have had to learn, that many times I am NOT right, or often there's really not a right or wrong, just different ways of looking at things.
Pres. Benson's timeless article on pride is something I should probably read a couple of times a year. Pride creeps in so easily and it is a constant battle, at least for me, to keep humble. 
There have been many small examples in my marriage of pride entering in, but I think there is one main one. My husband decided to leave a great paying job without my support for an "opportunity" that never panned out. We were left with no job. After months of looking for work, my husband finally had to take a job that paid us half of what we were making beforehand. He had told me that he had felt a sure answer from the Lord that he was supposed to quit his original job. I'm grateful this experience happened after we had already been married for decades and had a strong marital foundation because it was a difficult thing to work through. For many months I resented him quitting his job and was prideful in thinking, "if he just would have listened to me." I prided myself in being able to move forward even though he had made this mistake hoping that he could learn from it. One day as I was pondering things, all of a sudden the thought came to me, "what if this experience is for your learning, not your husband's?" That thought stunned me because I realized I had been facing this whole thing with a very prideful heart. 
I humbled myself before God. I stopped worrying about what my husband needed to learn and started looking for things that I needed to learn. I humbled myself and realized, maybe God really did want us to go through this experience for my growth and my learning. I stopped worrying about whether my husband really did feel a true prompting to quit his first job or not and I just focused on me. 
It probably took 7 or 8 years to recover financially from that experience, but I can say humbly that I am a much better person now. I think and hope that I am more humble in all areas of my life. I am more in love with my husband and have a deeper desire to serve him.
Pres. Benson is right that pride is the universal sin, the great vice. It keeps us from being one with God and turns us away from being able to be led by the Spirit. It is my prayer that in the future I can humble myself without being compelled to be humble. 

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