Motivation Monday - A Season of Brave
Monday Motivation September 25, 2023
A Season of Brave - A Brave Valour: Don’t Be Afraid of Change
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.
And now I am in transition again, this final transition into what I am calling “The Third Half” of life, into a season where I want to do legacy work, and spend my days and my hours being the woman only I can be, and leaving behind the fruit of my unique gifting. Gather is also in a season of transition, bringing on new leaders, and dreaming of new strategies to build a robust network of female disciples coast to coast. Being on the move personally and as a ministry doesn’t come without a bit of fear!
How are you feeling about the changes you are facing as you lead your family, in your church, in your ministry or marketplace? Are you in transition? Are you praying for something to change but feeling that everything will always be the same? Maybe things need to get moving. And maybe the person to get moving is you. Does fear of change leave you feeling paralyzed with uncertainty?
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. She could have stayed in the world she knew best, but there must have been a whisper of God prompting her to leave Moab and take the journey back to Naomi’s homeland, and right into the world of Boaz.
What was most brave and scandalous about Ruth’s behaviour is not what we tend to think. One night, after a season of gathering grain with Boaz’s blessing, she lay at feet, offering herself to him, 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?
In the book of Ruth, we find stunning examples of Ruth’s bravery in response to change that can impact your leadership in this cultural moment.
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? Canada is the second most multi-cultural country in the world. Do we follow our cultural traditions, or follow Christ?
Ruth Chose Courage Over Context
She went to the field to humbly gather the barley, bending over where her face would be hid. 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. Yet 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 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! God bless.
Cathie