Day 94 - Ambition
Scripture focus: The godly are directed by honesty, the wicked fall beneath their load of sin. The godliness of good people rescues them; the ambition of treacherous people traps them. Proverbs 11:5-6 NLT
One of the neat tricks employed by Hebrew writers is a thing called parallelism; they'd say the same thing twice, in two different ways - to help the listener remember! In Proverbs 11, the same point is made twice - and I hope we don't miss it. On first read, it's possible to get the idea that ambition is a bad thing - and we shouldn't have any. Once upon a time, my husband and I attended a youth conference in a large church that happened to have a cool gym. After the day's activities were finished, my husband took some of our team back to the gym. One of the youth wore sandals - thoroughly convinced that Pete would not find a way into the gym, and if he did, they wouldn't be allowed to use it. He underestimated his teacher. A team, a gym, a ball and lots of free time - Pete and his guys were ready to rumble. With the exception of our "doubting Thomas" who came dressed like he's going to a picnic. I suggested he play basketball, but play like Jesus, since he was wearing sandals. It was a silly joke, but this kid took me seriously. Game on! And sure enough, he played the way he thought Jesus would play. Known for his propensity to take it to the hoop, walking in the steps of Jesus - all he did was pass the ball. Traditionally a tenacious defender, as an imitator of Christ he eagerly invited his man to take his best shot, backing up and out of the way when his man eyed the basket. Someone had taught this young man that to be godly meant one had to eliminate passion, ambition and the urge to succeed from his vocabulary. Later that evening, a group of us vigorously discussed whether our sandal clad friend had effectively captured the character of Christ in his selfless play. Frankly, I felt a little heartsick. As an adult, I realized that he played the part of Jesus to perfection - based on what he had been taught. I concluded that somewhere along the way, the adults had messed up.
It is not the ambition of people that traps them nor are ambitious people inherently wicked. People aren't godly because they're honest, or good because they rescue others. The key is whether or not one is godly. Godliness - the state of becoming an effective imitator of God - enables folks to effectively replicate the personhood of Christ. It's in the imitation that they end up choosing to live within the parameters of honesty, make a commitment to do good and not evil, decide to rescue the perishing and even passionately and ambitiously pursue the purposes of God. Godliness produces a by-product of honesty, goodness, etc. I suggest that it also guides one in the expression of righteous ambition. Bottom line: unless and until we take the road of trusting God, no matter where it leads, we will never be able to please him - because compliance, honesty, and rescuing others is not his highest value for us - his greatest desire is that we trust him. When we trust, he can whisper the next right step into our ear, and we will follow.
If Jesus were playing basketball, I think he'd play it to the best of his natural ability. (To do less would dishonor himself, his team and even the competition. Who wants to play against someone who's not trying?) If he had an awesome jump shot - I bet he'd crank it up there. That would honor the one who created him with the ability to aim true. If he were a tenacious defender - he'd defend his man vigorously. That would honor the one who made him fleet of foot and defensively savvy. I don't think he would have been a poor sport. He wouldn't take cheap shots. If he knocked someone down by playing hard, he'd offer them a hand up. He'd give the game all he had and go out for pizza with the competition - win or lose. He'd be a gracious winner - and loser. But he'd play to win. And so should we. So long as we are stepping as God speaks.
Recommended reading: Deuteronomy 23 and 24 in the morning; Deuteronomy 25 and Psalm 75 in the evening
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