The Humility of God

I had a conversation earlier today that reminded me of the humility of God. Sometimes it is hard to imagine an almighty God possessing humble attributes. This is an attribute of God I find difficult to get my head around at times. It seems to me in our human understanding of things; supreme power and a humble disposition simply do not go hand and hand. In each generation and culture God is perceived differently. Even within Christianity, God has been portrayed and perceived in different ways at different times. Most are likely familiar with the patriarchal God, the judgmental God, the distant and impersonal God...and so on. Some may as well think God is an impersonal obscure energy.

A simple definition of humble is as follows:

"Thinking lowly of one's self; claiming little for one's self; not proud, arrogant, or assuming; thinking one's self ill-deserving or unworthy, when judged by the demands of God; lowly; weak; modest."

I don't believe God would require a certain attitude of heart in human beings that He Himself does not possess. As the scriptures say, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." (James 4:6) Having a humble attitude doesn't mean we always get it right. It means though, that there is a special grace given by God to those who have an overall humble attitude toward God, themselves, and others.

I had an experience when I was quite a bit younger that I would like to share as I believe it applies in this context. I'm cautious about sharing personal experiences of this nature on a public domain however; as these are always open to interpretation and quite subjective.

Yes, I'm going after the real thing to the best of my ability, so I don't think I'm delusional. With disclaimer complete I will continue.

I was young, not much out of high school and still getting used to living away from home for the first time. In four years time I had experienced enough that caused me to have a lot of questions. I was having a rare existential crisis at 22, not 62. This is a vulnerable age, especially when away from home for the first time. It was like I suddenly became aware with some finality at 22 years of age that there had to be more. It was a sense of feeling called to something greater than myself in my limited understanding of things. I just couldn't shake it. I had a sense I was being called to make a decision.

During this time I had a job in a nursing home and worked as an aid. I actually considered becoming a nurse as a result of my experiences there. I grew up some more very fast during my time there.

A women died while I was holding her hand. I remember the fear in her eyes as she looked directly into mine, and trying to comfort her. After helping another women to the toilet, I sat down on the floor and talked to her for half an hour even though I knew staff were not supposed to do this. I listened to her stories. I went looking for odd objects (at the request of certain residents) that I knew I would never find, and were probably lost years ago. I cleaned a lot of bottoms and met a lot of lonely people. Some of them had lived amazing lives in their prime.

One women in particular caught my attention. For the evening meal I had to go up to the second floor to help with feeding more handicapped patients. I was always assigned to a women named Elizabeth, who was 102 years of age at our first meeting. She could only take her food through a syringe and it had to be the consistency of baby food. She was so gracious, always thanking me after each bite. I remember wiping the excess food that didn't make it in off of her chin. I would try to make conversation with her, and would sometimes ask her if she 'liked' her dinner. She would always respond with a very gracious and enthusiastic, "Oh yes, thank you!"

One day as I was feeding her, the atmosphere of the room suddenly changed. I remember Elizabeth looked straight ahead with an intense focus. The tone of her voice changed as if she had a very important announcement to make. She then said to me, "He loves you more than you know." I was taken off guard at first and said, "Elizabeth, who is he?" Her voice became more pronounced and she said to me, "He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End." She said a couple of other things to me, but it's not necessary to mention it here as it is more personal. I don't need to share it to make my point. I knew the Holy Spirit was present, but I didn't know how I knew this, because I didn't know much about a 'holy spirit'.

You could say after an experience like that my life was changed forever.

And I share this for this reason: to give an example of the awesome humility of God. An almighty God could have chosen any way He pleased to communicate with me, or anyone for that matter. If this really was God let's say, He chose to come to me through the humble heart of a gracious and dignified, 102 year old lady in a nursing home. This women was physically in a state of shutting down, but the beauty of who she was on the inside came shining through.

Jesus Himself chose to come to us in a similar manner through His incarnation. He chose to be born in humble circumstances in addition to choosing the humble act of taking on human likeness. He was fully human and divine. That's humility.

"Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:29)

Jesus praised God for His humility when he said:

"I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to little ones." (Matthew 11:25)

And finally, how can we possibly leave out the The Beatitudes regarding humility:

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are the meek: for they shall posses the land.

Blessed are they who mourn: for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill.

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

We cannot put God in a box obviously, as He is all things to all people. Yes God is patriarchal, but the Spirit of God is also matriarchal. This is why he made us male and female, as this is in His image. God is just, as He is merciful. In reading the scriptures one can see that Jesus was very humble in word and deed, and yet he as well could be quite outspoken and downright shocking when it was required for Him to get His message across. Was he any less humble when He was shocking? No, humility can be speaking the truth in a difficult situation when it's needed. But here is the key, humility is always rooted in.........love, and putting the dignity of another ahead of our own.

"You must protect the few roses in life."

I have a particular affinity toward flower gardens. I think flowers are magnificent in beauty and rich in symbolism. There is no end to what gardens and flowers can symbolize in regard to spirituality and religious faith.

Of all flowers, the rose is simply my favorite. I think I must be drawn to it for a reason. If I ever have a house or property of my own I would like to grow a rose garden. It symbolizes so much that is the core of who I am as a person. Words are sometimes not enough to convey the depth of the human heart, and this is why symbols are so vitally important. This is the reason for art I believe, and God our creator is quite simply the ultimate artist. God is brilliant in His wisdom in that the whole world is filled to the brim with rich symbolism in all that He has created, there is more than meets the eye in regard to created things. An oak tree is not simply a tree , or a dove a bird.

I have realized over time as an artist myself, relating to objects as symbols or symbolic gestures seems to be second nature to me. For example, I can't help but notice a child who naturally starts spinning in dance when we are listening to music together. I have encountered this a number of times with the children I have cared for...and I get it completely. It is natural to them. The universe is circular in movement. I was once told by a musician that it was discovered by physicists that music notes actually ascend upward in a circular/spiral motion, and that there are notes that humans have never even heard or discovered. So, when I see a child start to naturally spin in response to the music they are hearing.....I immediately think of the motion of the universe. There is even more to this, but I'll leave at that for now.

I had a dream once that I believe was one of the "big" ones of my life, and I would like to share it. I do believe this particular dream was given to me as a message to heed for the rest of my life. It was beautiful and timeless in its message, and rich in symbolism.

The dream started with a scene of me watching a group of young boys in line going to some sort of religious camp. Their camp director was an 'Assembly of God' pastor and the boys themselves were 'Baptist'. They were being forced down a hill toward the camp, as well as being forced to drink a health drink that was bitter in taste. I was hovering above them watching all of this, and I felt sorry for them. There was such a sense of helplessness and a feeling of these boys being trapped. I could not help them, though I wanted to. I walked away from this scene and suddenly came to a single, simple white house on a little hill. The sun was shining brightly, and the grass was so green and went for miles. There was a moment of peace, but I quickly sensed danger coming toward me although I could not see it yet. I entered the house and found a Catholic priest lived in the home alone. I looked out the window and saw a group of young men running toward us with a war cry...and I knew they meant to cause us harm. I kept thinking they were fraternity brothers for some reason. They all had white t-shirts on as well, which is interesting. Suddenly this priest and I started running around the house and shutting and locking all the doors and windows as a means of protection. When all was well and we were safe, the priest took me to an 'inner room' in the house and I knew that this was his personal space where he came to be alone. I was amazed to find brilliant art work everywhere, and a black leather recliner in the middle of the room. He was listening to one of my favorite musicians, Peter Gabriel (a lot of symbolism there if I may say so :)). He turned to look at me and said the only words spoken to me in the dream, "You must protect the few roses in life." And the dream was over and I woke up.

I had this dream almost ten years ago...and have told only a few close friends up to this point. I would be most interested in any additional thoughts anyone would have regarding the dream. It still seems like I had it only yesterday.

So, what are the roses in life that need protecting? I think this is a personal matter for everyone, and this dream was showing me what I should protect personally.

However, I believe it is also a universal message in scope regarding the present day Church. I quote.......,

"Catholic is an adjective derived from the Greek adjective 'katholikos', meaning "general" or "universal. In the context of Christian ecclesiology it has a rich history and several usages. Roman Catholics use the term "Catholic Church" to refer to the Church whether Western or Eastern, in full communion with the Bishop of Rome. The Catholic Church views catholic as referring to her attempts to spread throughout the whole earth, and her insistence to offer salvation to all people and cultures at all times. Catholic is one of the Four Marks of the Church, the other being unity, sanctity, and apostolicicity."

As our Nicene Creed states, "I believe in one, Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.

What I find so amazing in the dream, is that the Catholic Church is likened to a rose that must be protected. I don't believe this "message" if you will, was simply for my life, but it can be for all who seek rest and stability in their walk with Jesus. God's truth is universal, but we live in a world where not all are following His ways at the moment obviously. Even those that have acknowledged Christ can be lead or lead others astray as well, even if it is well meaning but misguided. As the symbols convey in the dream, there are many who will seek to attack and force their own agenda on anyone who will listen and follow. This is especially dangerous regarding the truth of following Christ.

I will end this post sharing an experience I had once:

Many years ago I was in distress trying to make a decision about a certain matter. I went to a church service, and there was a time for personal prayer requests after the main service was over. A women that I did not know, and who knew nothing of my dilemma came up to me and very gently but quickly whispered in my ear, "God does not force Himself on you", and then she quickly walked away. I never found out who she was.

Simplicity of Love

I've been pondering the significance of simplicity recently. It gives me cause to think of Jesus and his focus on simplicity in Matthew 10:42. "And whoever gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he shall not lose his reward."

It also gives me cause to think back to my Confirmation when I was trying think of what name I would choose. It seemed everyone was picking Mary or Elizabeth. I chose Veronica. I remember wanting to choose a name that had a personal meaning to me. I was always moved as a child by the image of Veronica wiping the face of Jesus when He fell under the weight of His cross. That simple act had so much meaning and significance for me. It was as if I could identify with Veronica's compassion, and urgency that she just had to get to Him to offer some sort of comfort. I would imagine myself as Veronica kneeling to wipe his face, and wondering how He would have looked at me. In my heart, it is the simplicity of the act that makes it truly great.

I now imagine two people standing side by side in heaven. One is a martyr perhaps, and the other might have indeed given a cup of cold water to a child, that's all. Which act deserves the greater reward? Perhaps some might be inclined to think that the martyr should receive a special reward for his brave act. It is neither really in my opinion. Because what it really comes down to is the condition of the heart in which the act was done. I don't think there are any 'proud' martyrs in heaven. A cup of cold water given from a heart bursting with compassion, is far more significant than giving up a life for any other reason. So, I suppose another way to say it is, no matter how "great" an act is, was it done with simplicity of heart, a heart of love?

"So faith, hope, love, abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13)

"Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13)

And finally........

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." (Matthew 5:8)

And since we know God is Love....

Purity of heart is a heart of love, and it is a simple thing.