22 August 2015 - whose story?

Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

There is always the temptation to be like the Pharisees. We are conditioned to desire praise for our work. The Internet consists largely of likes, plus ones, up-votes, and re-tweets. This builds off of childhoods of show and tells, contests, and stickers and other byproducts of the token economies of elementary schools. If we realize how deeply embedded this stuff is in us we will realize how dangerous the temptation is now. 

It isn't that we get phylacteries and long tassels or seats of honor at banquets or synagogues. Those aren't the honors which motivate us. But we do very much want to be honored for our work. We want to be thought of in a certain way, whether as a teacher, or master of a skill or art, or as this kind of person or that. Maybe we want to be thought of as kind, or clever, or creative, or some other thing. But to desire those things for self-image is very different than desiring to actually simply be them, whatever they might be.

How can we step back from this conditioned need for affirmation? Let's look at Ruth. She has a certain contentedness that prevents her from overreaching from what she needs to insisting on what might be more impressive. She does not think highly of herself even though the fact that she left her father and mother and the land of her birth to come to a people she did not know previously. That is actually quite an impressive thing to do, just as it was for Abraham. But she doesn't let it go to her head. She doesn't insist on being thought of a certain way now just because of that. She is willing to glean the grain in the fields as the poor are allowed to do. When Boaz takes notice of her she is deferential and humble. She is allows her own child to be the heir to support Naomi in her old age.

How can Ruth be so humble? It can only be the LORD that gives her this grace. In Naomi she sees the work of a God who is worth following. She sees how the LORD blesses those who fear him and begins to fear him herself. This is her focus, her purpose, and her motivation. Her story is impressive and it would be easy to become wrapped up in that. But she never loses sight of the LORD. She pursues him and his blessings. The story never becomes all about her. It remains God's story, of which she has a wondrous part.