Sacred Ground Ministries

“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” – Ernest Hemingway

I promise I didn’t (fully) choose this quote because it’s by Ernest Hemingway, my collie’s namesake. See picture below.

Isn’t he just the cutest? I realize that I’m a little over the top when it comes to the level of affection I have for my dog. Dog people, you get me, right?

What drew me to this quote is its mention of our former selves. As someone who studies human behavior and emotions, I have a deep an abiding belief in the ability to change and thus have a former self. But first, what is nobility? Initially images of Downtown Abbey appear in my mind which can I just say, bless Julian Fellowes. Tea, anyone? As lovely as Downtown is to watch, in concepts of nobility like that portrayed in the show nobility is simply inherited through a birthright. In this economy, people are elevated above one another simply because of their families. This is absolutely great if your father is an Earl, but not so great for everyone else.

It is this understanding of nobility that burned Ernest Hemingway’s biscuits (also Jesus’ for that matter). In the economy of the Kingdom of Heaven, the first will be last (Matthew 19:30). However, a quick Google search gives a broader way to look at nobility with synonyms like virtue, goodness, and integrity. These words help get to more of the point I would really like to make. It helps us to see that nobility, or integrity, or virtue are things that we can aspire to and attain.

What I’m really getting at is best summed up in a question: Is my, is our virtue, goodness, and integrity increasing? Or is our competitive spirit, sharpened by the culture of comparison and achievement increasing? While most of us don’t live in the world of lords and ladies, we do still certainly strive to outdo one another, despite the cost to ourselves and the cost to others. Despite the cost of our very lives. There is no nobility to be had this way because it is truly the easy way out. Comparison means never really having to face ourselves, only those around us. And to be honest, those around us can be quite easy to fool. It’s fairly simple to fake love and patience for about a whole hour. Yet, when we only choose to reveal the best parts of us or fake the best parts of us, it leads to a great sadness indeed of never being known, really known.

However, true nobility, true work (and trust me, it is work) happens when we look squarely at who we are without judgement and without pretense with the goal of becoming better than our former selves. True nobility is being okay with what you realize in the mirror and giving others permission to do the same. This calls my thoughts back to Galatians 5 where we learn what the fruit of having a Spirit filled life will look like. *For those involved in children’s ministry please cue the Fruit of the Spirit song.*

Love. Joy. Peace. Patience. Kindness. Goodness. Faithfulness. Gentleness. Self-control.

Figuring out if I have more of these qualities than my neighbor does is sinful at worst and useless at best. However, having more of these qualities today than I had yesterday is the test of character and true marker of a life lived with goodness.

Lovingly,