Emboldened
At a recent Women’s Vision Foundation forum, one of the speakers
was Brené Brown, author of The Gifts of
Imperfection. She talked about how much courage it takes to become vulnerable;
to connect with others, allowing them to show patience, understanding and compassion
or a lack thereof.
A scene came into my mind when she challenged us to “step into the
arena”. In the movie Gladiator, Maximus Decimus Meridius and his cohorts (who were recruited
criminals, slaves, fugitives, and prisoners of war) stand behind an iron gate, about
to enter the gladiator games where they will either defeat their opponents or
die a violent death to the sheer delight of the blood thirsty crowd. In this
scene, the man standing in front of Maximus is so frightened that he urinates
down his leg. Duly noted, Maximus (who is standing behind him) quietly takes one step back. Here we see the
contrast between a trained, fearless military commander who sees victory waiting
and an individual shaking in terror, seeing his life flash before his eyes. Once
the battle began, Maximus took charge and emphasized the importance of working together
as a team.
Stepping into the daily arena implies that we have
no idea what to expect on any given day or moment. Those we encounter can
change identity from friend to foe without warning. This is not to say we
should go into each day defensively, but rather, we should keep our eyes
open and be prepared for battle.
The Apostle Paul wrote about the spiritual battle
(see previous blog titled “Paper Armor”). Each piece of armor worn by Roman
soldiers is symbolic of truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation and the
Spirit. Steven, the first recorded Christian martyr, was undoubtedly armed with
all of the above. He may have appeared to have been defeated as the opposition
hurled stones at him but that was not the case. As with Jesus Christ hanging on
a cross after being beaten to the brink of death, the victory was won in a
realm unseen by men.
In workplace, there is competition for higher
positioning. There is back stabbing and brutal gossip. But the real battle is
fought when we daily ask God to show us who we can show kindness to and to open
doors to those who are seeking to know Him; the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
That’s when we experience the enemy’s darts and that’s when we must be armed!
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a
roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith,
knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the
world.
-- 1 Peter 5:8-9
-- 1 Peter 5:8-9
What an amazingly beautiful spririt you have.
ReplyDelete-- John
I need to add an addendum to this post. A man whom I greatly respect gave me an additional perspective of "fearlessness" from the vantage point of being in military battle himself. It's a different philosophy regarding fear that each of us face at times in our lives. To quote him: "The military commanders I've known, as well men in the sports of boxing and wrestling, all state that they experience fear before going into battle. The same has been true for me and I've participated in all three activities. The difference between Maximus and the urinating man is that one of them has become familiar with fear, recognizes its symptoms and, with experience, has learned to turn it into a positive force, using the adrenaline, energy, and focus to make one a better performer or fighter."
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