Self-Realization Versus Confession
Prayer abases intellect and pride, crucifies vainglory, and signs our spiritual bankruptcy, and all these are hard for flesh and blood to bear.
E. M. Bounds1
Possibly, much of the flimsy piety of the present day arises from the ease with which men attain to peace and joy in these evangelistic days. We would not judge modern converts, but we certainly prefer that form of spiritual exercise which leads the soul by the way of Weeping-cross, and makes it see its blackness before assuring it that it is "clean every whit."
Charles Haddon Spurgeon2
Before we can pray, we must be aware of our shortcomings. We must confess our sins, and confession requires humility.
Unfortunately, the church leadership role sometimes works against humility—despite the fact that the ministry is made up of tasks that must be done humbly. For example, the importance of delivering God's message to spiritually starved people three or four times a week should humble all but the most arrogant of ministers.
Yet effective preaching requires skill. The skill must be developed, and as a preacher's fluency grows, so will satisfaction with the progress. There's the problem. Spiritual work becomes secular work the minute it is tainted with pride. If the Christian leader preaches, prays, and counsels with faithfulness and even a little skill, he is praised, and the line between legitimate satisfaction and pride is threatened.
Take the counseling experience of Jim Danhof, pastor of First Covenant Church, Cedar Rapids, Iowa:
"My second year of ministry, I was in a loving, open, warm church. One of the things that goes with ministry in that kind of church is a great deal of counseling. I had some counseling abilities and some early successes. I started to think I was God's ...
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