Being Ordinary

We live in a world that exalts performance. We reward the best, the fastest, the smartest, the most talented. We give prizes for the first, second and third places. Any competitor knows that anything below these is meaningless, worthy only of a token of ‘consolation’. We admire those who make it to the top. So, we too, clamber upwards, trying to be the best so that we are admired.

Most of us are not the best in our everyday lives. We are ordinary most of the time. We live with what we have, finishing each day, each cycle, one at a time. We often see ourselves beside others who are quicker, sharper, wittier. It makes us feel dumpy and slow. We think to ourselves – ‘I could never do what she does’. ‘If only I had the gifts he has’. ‘She is so much more than I’.

These comparisons are odious; they make us feel smaller. So, we put away our tools, before we make laughable mistakes. We keep our hands down, before volunteering for something we may do badly. We keep our wings away, thinking we are not worthy of flight. We stay in safe territory, scratching away in small spaces with our eyes cast down.

And we do worse. We mock at those who are weak. We focus on their mistakes, wiggling away at their faults. We criticize, looking for errors, laughing at stupidity. And when those on top fall, we take secret delight. We are fascinated when they turn to alcoholism, lose all their money, have marital problems, or become fat. We are secretly relieved because their failures make them ordinary… as ordinary as us.

We need to break out of this way of thinking. We need to remember that society is built upon errors and lessons. We don’t see this, because we only mark paths of success – we forget the dead ends and closed doors faced by those who found their way eventually. Society is also about ordinary people in ordinary lives- some becoming more vulnerable as they are caught in power games. We can try our best to make things better, or we can just sit in the seat of scoffers, watching from a comfortable distance.

If we choose to act, we have to accept that we will not be the best at what we do most of the time. There are always quicker minds, stronger bodies, and hands more talented around us. Others can write better, talk faster, and look sharper. This does not negate the necessity of our action. The needs in the world are often greater that the efforts made to meet them. And those at the coalface are often desperate for support and company.

Our ordinary lives can make a difference. The keys to this are grace and dependence on God.

We need to be gracious to ourselves, accepting our own weaknesses. If we fall, we need to pick ourselves up, and put our shoulders to the plough once again. We need to let ourselves fail, so that we allow ourselves to stretch our wings. When we do so, we remember that we have strengths, unique positions of influence, and special abilities that no one else has. No one can replicate what we can do in society.

We need to be gracious to others. We need to be kind to those weaker than ourselves, encouraging them along their way. It does not help if we preen ourselves, showing off our best features. We can help if we are patient and humble; if we show others our mistakes so that they learn from them and exceed our achievements. When our competitors and adversaries fall, it may mean extending a helping hand, shutting up, and giving them space to recover.

We may see nothing of ourselves, but God sees us differently.

Moses, when he was called said, “O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”

The Lord replied: “Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

Gideon, when he was called said, “But Lord, how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”

The LORD answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together.”

The truth is that Moses and Gideon were ordinary.
The truth is that we are ordinary.
But with grace and guidance from God, there is great power in the ordinary.