The opposite of humility is pride.  But in order to discuss humility, we must first talk about pride.  The world would define pride as appreciating your talents or abilities.  Such as you take pride in the craft you made or pride in your work.  The world teaches that we should be proud of our accomplishments, but there is a negative side to pride.  The Bible Dictionary defines pride as “A lack or absence of humility or teachableness.  Pride sets people in opposition to each other and to God.  A proud person sets himself above those around him and follows his own will rather than God’s will.”  From this definition, we can see how damaging pride can be in a marriage relationship.  Pride sneaks into our relationships and creates contention, discontentment, and anger.  If not addressed, it can destroy a relationship.  The antidote to pride is humility.

Humility is recognizing our dependence on God and acknowledging that our strength comes from God.  Humility allows us to repent, love others, and forgive.  It helps us to focus less on ourselves and more on others.  “Turning to God in faith and repentance is the cure for pride and self-centeredness” (Goddard, 2009, p. 72).  Humility allows us to look past the mistakes or faults of our spouse and see how much we love them.  Humility helps us to seek God’s assistance when we feel tension, frustration, or anger toward our spouse.  Humility shows us how to let go of the little things and focus on what it truly important.  Humility allows us to draw closer to God so that he can continue to help and bless us in our marriage relationships.

I love this talk by President Gordon B. Hinckley and his advice on how we can humble ourselves.

“Choose to be Humble” by Gordon B. Hinckley

Works Cited

Goddard, H. W. (2009). Drawing Heaven into Your Marriage. Cedar Hills, UT: Joymap Publishing.