Friday, November 18, 2011

"FAN THE FLAME" FRIDAY - Conceit

Welcome to "Fan the Flame" Friday.

This is a weekly post that will be "short and sweet" (kinda like me...)

Just a word and a phrase, a sentence or a question...just a little something to "fan the flame" of your creativity!

Today's word: conceit

What does the word conceit mean to you?

Do you think there's a difference between conceit and pride?

How does conceit affect a person's relationship with God?

Why is our world so full of conceit?


Let me know what you think!!


"This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you…For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline." (2 Timothy 1:6-7)


BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

12 comments:

  1. Now Sharon you really have me thinking. I would say pride and conceit are relatively the same. In both one has an exaggerated opinion of themselves.

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  2. Conceit places yourself above others. The Pharisees were a good example in the Bible. They were good scholars but they boasted about their knowledge but didn't practice it. Happy Thanksgiving. Blessings to you

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  3. I came here earlier, and I didn't have an immediate answer. I'm having guests for dinner (real ones, not invisible ones) Therefore, they actually have to eat my cooking, and I'm a hot mess worrying about it. I can't think.

    But I'll give you this much. I wonder if pride is the process, and conceit is the product. By that I mean if we are full of pride or are prideful about something, it begins to fill us and take up space that ought to belong to things of substance. When we're all full of it (pride that is) then we are really "fully empty". I think of conceit as being puffed up with that emptiness.

    I'm probably going to change my mind about my answer when I read the others. I'll check back after my evening with guests...

    ... which hopefully will not include a trip to the ER to have stomach's pumped.

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  4. stomachs. Not stomach's. See? I told you I was a hot mess.

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  5. Praying but I will be back...

    Humility

    Father, in the name of Jesus, I clothe myself with humility [as the garb of a servant, so that its covering cannot possibly be stripped from me]. I repent and renounce pride and arrogance. Father, You give grace to the humble. Therefore I humble myself under Your mighty hand, that in due time you may exalt me. Amen. (Walking in Humility, Volume 3 of Prayers That Avail Much)

    James 4:6-7; Proverbs 3:34-35


    "I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul will make its boast in the Lord; the humble will hear it and rejoice. O Magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His Name together. "
    Psalm 34:1-3

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  6. Oooooooooo I like Debbie's... "puffed up with emptiness" (yeah)... good thoughts Debbie!..
    (I just caught hers as I returned from my comment!)

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  7. Hi Sharon,

    Will think about this one. Due to have grandsons here soon and then visit christmas fair with them.
    But wanted to say Hi and have a great weekend

    Nita

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  8. Hi Sharon,

    I don't think pride and conceit are the same.

    I think we can feel pride and joy about things {like seeing our children accomplish new milestones in their lives} without being conceited.

    To be full of yourself and think you are more superior than another to me is conceit. In that regard, it is hard to find a person likeable if s/he is full of conceit.

    In God's eyes, we are all equal, we are all sinners and should never put ourselves above another.

    Conceited people are too full of themselves to see they are equal, when really they need to remember the plank in their own eye, before trying to take the speck out of another's.

    Well, that's my view. Love to you!

    Have a splendid weekend. Hugs, Kerrie

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  9. I'm a day late (and a dollar short, LOL) Sharon. Geesh, my Dashboard has been all messed up lately; I don't get notices of half the blogs I follow when they update these days, very frustrating.

    Anyway, conceit, another good word. Conceit, like pride, is having a very high opinion of oneself, I think Pharisee when I think pride/conceit. Thinking more highly of ourselves than we should because we are merely dust, here for just a few short years compared to eternity. Arrogance would be similar to conceit. I think it is also not acknowledging that God gives us everything and thinking we are capable to doing things without him. The antidote of course is being humble and I think we got the best model of humbleness in our Lord Jesus!

    betty

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  10. Blessings Sharon, I bet you thought I forgot to come back... conceited as I am (NOT) I just had to
    fan this flame.

    To me, I guess I have seen far too many people fall because of their pride or conceit. But pride can be good as someone pointed out above. (I knew I should not have read the comments on the way down here) but I think that pride is different. Being pleased with someone's accomplishments is different. Back to the topic at hand of CONCEIT. I still go with Debbie's response!

    Conceit is when someone is so full of **** themselves! Puffed up and vain come to mind. When someone has excessive appreciation of their own worth and value, and gloat that over others. Maybe I'm thinking more about conceited than conceit... though it is a ROOT! Just like PRIDE is a ROOT! Roots can be good or rotten.

    So are pride and conceit the same? related but not the same. But both need HUMBLING! I shared the prayers above because they came up on my prayer list right before coming here.*God moment

    [...and also because Friday is my day set aside for prayer, preparing for ministry, etc. and I'm not suppose to be visiting, much less commenting
    -it's just that I set aside this time with God, and it's like if we're talking and then I allow others to call or interrupt when I set that time aside for you... as this is]Does that sound conceited? No, but that kind of selfishness is different than other selfish things we may do. The same goes for pride or conceit. (maybe I'm the only one that gets this). It can become a stumbling block (and many times does) and it is an obstacle for drawing closer to God. (now is what I explained about prayer day make more sense? ...it does fit in my point).

    Conceit can be a favorable opinion, which isn't all that bad.

    Yet both conceit and pride stand between us and God. After all, we know "who"was cast out of heaven for this very thing... wanting to exalt oneself above God... or others! In a way, we do this, without thinking about it, when we don't forgive ourselves... (someone pointed this out to me) If God forgives, who are we not to forgive? I think some very well intention bloggers/friends snub others and in a way, it's conceit! (not here at this blog however or the ones I visit - lol)This gets to me especially when we are believers, or Christians, yet we all have faults... none greater or less in God's eyes. And it is HIS EYES that matter not others.
    So thankful that God sees our heart.

    And your last question... why??? because of the fallen world in which we live... puffed up pseudo people exist. People who live off of being superior when in essence they may be very insecure buy into the worldly system of being better, stronger, greater, sexier, etc. of the media. But as lights, we must not conform nor judge them least we remove the speck or log in our own eyes first. yeah (sigh) disgusting as pride or conceit is in others, we must look if there be any in us, hidden ways that the enemy grabs us... and people that are searching fill themselves with emptiness rather than God. Part of that is to see themselves better... and those of us with esteem issues, well we get rubbed and irritated at this. Some wrong and some of it right on but the conceit of the world is like so much else we don't need but we should find a way to forgive and be a light or redirect this high esteem to something for God's glory. No one should exalt themselves... for only God is worthy! Only God is above all else! Too many are lost in this world of wrong images and self.

    (sorry about the book chapter, but once I get going, I just keep on venting, I mean typing...)

    A very stirring fan the flame. Once again, digging deeper with you and your words! Have a blessed and wonderful weekend! Rest some...

    Love and hugs,
    Peggy
    P.S. I'll be over for that special Sat. stroll later.

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  11. Hi Sharon,

    I am back on this one. I have read again and read all the comments. After doing so, I have to say, Daughter of the King, expresses best what I think the difference between, pride and conceit is.

    God Bless - Nita

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  12. Oh my goodness it is Monday and I am just getting around to this - sorry.

    Yes I do believe that there is a difference between pride and conceit -

    pride can be good and it can be bad as in false pride.

    I think conceit - it is not such a good thing - keeps you from growing.

    sandie

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"So [I] have been greatly encouraged in the midst of [my] troubles and suffering, dear brothers and sisters, because you have remained strong in your faith. It gives [me] new life to know that you are standing firm in the Lord. How [I] thank God for you!" (1 Thessalonians 3:7-9)

Thanks for your comments - it is such a joy to be sharing my journey with friends like YOU!

(NOTE: Anonymous comments will be removed. Thank you for understanding.)