The Summer of Brave #3 – A Brave Valour: Don’t Be Scared of Change
“The invitation from Jesus is a request for our presence and participation. It’s not to another country. It’s to Him. Wherever brave takes us. Brave is a resounding “Yes” when He calls your name.
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As much as I have considered myself a change agent, I also like the status quo. The day after I married my husband, I got on a plane and flew 3,000 miles across the country to move from a western province to the east. The change excited me – I couldn’t wait for the adventure to begin. As soon as it did, I started comparing my new environment to the one I had left and very quickly, found myself feeling like an alien in a foreign land. In the west, you never had to invite anyone for coffee or a meal, they just dropped in. Not so in the east. I was an informal, ‘come as you are’, ‘come right in, the door’s open’, kind of girl, living in a ‘don’t show up unless you’re invited’ world. Trust me, I tried showing up more than once on someone’s doorstep uninvited and although welcomed, there was also a sense that I had broken an unspoken rule that you call first.
I wonder how Ruth felt, following her mother-in-law from her nation of birth, husbandless, without options – to a new land and an unfamiliar God.
What was most scandalous about Ruth’s behaviour is not what we tend to think. She lay at Boaz’s feet in an accepted cultural norm for women to show her respect and submission. Yes, she was a much younger woman showing her willingness to give herself to an older, wealthier man. But that is not why Boaz called Ruth eshet chayil, a woman of valour (Ruth 3:1). It was because of her choice to follow her mother-in-law, Naomi, out of honour, love, and respect to a new nation.
Where is God calling you to ‘come’ that requires a brave response?
Life is a series of choices. You will be known by what you say yes to and what you say no to.
Ruth Chose Courage Over Culture.
She chose to leave behind her culture in order to immerse herself in an entirely new world. Do you find yourself elevating cultural traditions over obedience to Christ?
Ruth Chose Courage Over Context
She went to the field to humbly gather the barley. Where do you expect God to find you and elevate you to a position of honour? Certainly not on the threshing floor, or hidden in sheaves of wheat. And yet, as Ruth’s kinsman redeemer Boaz found her there, God can find you even in the invisible spaces.
Ruth Chose Courage Over Conformity
Rather than trying to ‘get her man’ with being obvious and using womanly charms, Ruth used a God-honouring strategy of humble service. What makes Ruth so unique? The Hebrew words used in the book of Ruth to describe her are eshet chayil, which means ‘woman of valour’. It also means to have power, strength, resources, and wisdom.
Valour isn’t about what you do, but how you do it.
Where does your bravery get you when you are out of options, like Ruth? Can you answer God’s call to ‘come’ to a new identity, where you are strong, resourceful, and whole?
Ruth’s identity was so strong within her that it carried her above her culture, context, comfort,d and the need to conform. Boaz chose her because of her choice to honour her mother-in-law. Their bizarre love story led eventually to Jesus coming from their lineage. Her saying yes to ‘coming’ to a new nation, led to Christ’s coming to us from His heavenly home.
Don’t be scared of change. Don’t be scared of living a strong life.
The world is waiting for you to live as a woman of valour. Find your place in God’s story, knowing your identity does not depend on culture, context, and how well you conform. Say yes to His invitation to ‘come’ to a new place of belonging.
I believe in you!
Cathie