Top Dog

I feed the birds and squirrels and chipmunks in my backyard. I set up several concrete blocks on their end and put a paver on the top of each one. There is at least a foot between them. They look a bit like pagodas. Every day I put seed out on top of the pavers and inside the empty squares of blocks so that there’s room at the diner for everyone. I even sing a special song to let them all know breakfast is ready. It is really fun to watch how they interact with each other. 

Probably the most entertaining is the chipmunk. Such a small creature but “wicked fast”! He knows to approach from his hiding places. The underside of bushes makes for great pathways. He seldom runs across the yard but runs the perimeter – obviously he doesn’t like to be out in the open for long. Smart, since hawks are often flying overhead. He respects his real threats.

Where “Charlie Chipmunk” gets daring, however, is at the seed piles. Sparrows and doves are happily munching and minding their own business on the concrete pavers. It is then that Charlie stealthily climbs the block, and with fingers gripping the edge of the upper paver, he peeks over at the feeding birds. All at once, he surprise attacks by hopping up and running across the length of all the pavers, as if there were an invisible bridge between them.  It is like watching a bowling game, only the birds jump or fly up before he mows them down. Of course, as soon as he passes, they all find another pile of seeds behind him to feed on. It doesn’t matter, though – Charlie has made his point. He’s Top Dog, at least in his own mind.

I can’t tell you how many times in life my goal has been to be Top Dog, at least in my own mind.  Every time I hope people recognize my wisdom or my expertise…  Every time I fail to inquire if someone else had an idea or I simply don’t listen to them… When I’m more concerned about impressing others or even myself… When I get annoyed at a person for “interrupting” what I’m doing because they want to say something… When I’m impatient that others aren’t responding quickly enough to my needs (especially a server behind a fast-food counter)…  Thinking I’m the exception to the traffic laws… When I’m easily offended… The list can go on but I’ll stop here.

What does Poor in Spirit look like? It doesn’t look like Top Dog. Just the opposite. When a person offers to rearrange their day just to fit mine… When someone listens, really listens… It’s people sacrificing so much of their time and energy to help others. It’s working together as a great team, where each contribution is valued and the whole is greater than the sum of their parts. It’s a parent walking a teething baby in the middle of the night. It’s yielding the right of way to another motorist, even when it’s my turn. It’s saying, “Y’know, your idea sounds better than mine; let’s go with yours!” 

What does Poor in Spirit look like? It’s letting go of the need to be Top Dog, even when everything in our society points to a demand to “succeed”, to be first, to be Numero Uno (or at least Dos.)  It is no longer valuing the faster car, the bigger house, the chic styles, requiring the greater thrill, or even requiring that my traditions be followed, or that my opinion is the one everyone gets excited over. The Kingdom of Heaven is a place for the “losers” of this world, but who are the real winners in the eyes of God. 

Can I even begin to imagine how revolutionary this must have sounded to Matthew’s community? To those people on the hillside when Jesus of Nazareth first spoke those words? To think that it is the “little guy” in life who may be the true leader in God’s Kingdom. God rewrites the story and redefines the hierarchy so that it’s the obedient 11-year-old scullery maid who establishes and guides the entire household, simply by doing her tasks with love. Sure, it is so easy for me to think that all those more impressive things are blessings, and they can be. But the true blessing comes in being Poor in Spirit. The real greatness comes in being an active and vibrant citizen in the inconceivable Kingdom of Heaven. I know this in my head, at least.

But am I ready for that? Am I ready for the Revolution? Am I willing to be part of it?