Readers who have been engaged in trying to understand Scripture in the Old Testament Book of Numbers will know the story of Balaam stretches many people’s credulity. The charming naivete of these stories disguises a brilliance of literary composition and a profundity of theological reflection. The text is at once both very funny and deadly serious.
Balaam is also known from an inscription in the Jordon valley dating from about 700 BC. He did not worship God (Yahweh) but knew of him.
The incident we encounter in these chapters is an example of a person being captivated by God’s Spirit and speaking spontaneously words from God which they have not previously thought. It is the “prophetic gift” seen in action.
The account of Balaam is presented as a story to be read, enjoyed and learned from. It is not presented as a fly-on-the-wall documentary. If we accept that it has a historical basis, four things can be said.
First, animal divination was standard procedure in Mesopotamia, fortune telling by observing animals. So, the donkey’s obtuseness was a natural way in which God could communicate to Balaam in terms he readily understood.
Second, people and animals do develop a relationship which includes an intuitive two-way communication. The Bible pictures a close relationship between humans and the animal kingdom both before the fall of Adam and Eve (Genesis 2:19) and after the new creation (Isaiah 11:6-9). It would be surprising if that is not sometimes foreshadowed now, seeing that other aspects of it are. (The Holy Spirit is a foreshadowing of what will be fulfilled later, in Ephesians 1:14).
Third, most people use the image of “something spoke to me” very loosely. A beautiful sunset, an ugly rubbish tip, a work of art can all “speak” to us. Balaam could be waking up to what God is saying through the donkey’s action: “It was as if he said . . . “
Finally, if God diversified language (Genesis 11:1-9), there is no logical reason (apart from scepticism) as to why he should not do the unusual thing which a literal reading of 22:28 suggests.
The point of the story is that Balaam was as obstinate as the donkey, and that God broke through his pride to achieve his purposes. The story is a commentary on the first commandment: “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3).
Podcast ends
22 September, 2023
SNAKE CHARM
– Numbers 21:4–9
THIS unusual form of “healing” is often dismissed as a piece of tribal fetishism. But the snake (which may have been pure copper, more red than bronze, the colour of atonement) was a focus for faith.
To look up at the image (which was beyond reach) was a sacramental act. The worshipper said, in effect, ‘I trust the God I cannot touch to achieve by his chosen means that which I cannot do.’ It provided John with a picture of Jesus’ death on the cross, the effect of which cannot be understood and only accepted by faith (John 3:14f).
THERE is so much emphasis placed on achievement in life!
We all know that achievements are important if we are to grow and develop, but they shouldn’t overshadow everything else. This is why I hope readers will like this idea from Kurt Vonnegut’s 1963 literary novel “Cat’s Cradle”.
“Life is a garden,” he wrote, “not a road. We enter and exit through the same gate. Wandering, where we go matters less than what we notice.”
Perhaps the real purpose of our achievements and our wanderings is simply to provide new things to notice … and wonder about.
Mr Vonnegut’s play on words reminds us that so much is missed, even when it stares right back at us. In psychology, this is referred to as “change blindness”, a phenomenon that has been intensely investigated by researchers since the 2000s.
CHARACTER strengths are such an important element of positive psychology that for many people and organisations who work in this field, they have become the central focus of their work, to the exclusion of all other positive psychology topics. One reason is that strengths are such a tangible, concrete subject. When you talk about strengths, people easily grasp what you mean. There’s none of the confusion or raised eyebrows that you often get when hedonic or eudaimonic wellbeing are mentioned . And what’s more, the language associated with strength is, by and large, pretty down-to-earth.
– You can read more about hedonic or eudaimonic wellbeing by reading the captioned article
At the time of writing there are several well-known classifications of strengths.
Firstly, there’s an assessment of personal, or “character”, strengths: the VIA Inventory of Strengths (VIA-IS, or VIA for short) is probably the best known in positive psychology circles. It’s made up of 24 character strengths, such as love, curiosity and social intelligence. The basic online VIA assessment is free and includes a short report showing your strengths in top-down order, with an option to pay a small fee for a more detailed report.
The second model is the Strenghtscope ™ assessment of work-related strengths. This model is also available online, and assesses the 24 strengths which are most critical to your work performance, such as decisiveness, results focus and collaboration.
Lastly, there is the R2 strengths assessment (formerly known as “Realise2”) which spans both work-related and personal strengths, and is based on 60 different psychological attributes including “listener”, “rapport builder” and “time optimiser”.
A misconception about strengths
People often confuse strengths with competencies, talents or skills, but in positive psychology they are not the same thing.
For example, the 24 VIA character strengths differ from competencies, talents and skills in that:
. They are morally valued in their own right
. They cannot be wasted.
It’s worth remembering that the various strengths models used by positive psychologists do not necessarily define strengths in the same way, so take care with any interpretation delivered.
What is a strength?
In models such as Strengthscope ™ and R2, strengths are those personal attributes which energise us, feel like us and enable us to perform at our best. It’s very likely that your strengths are
also the things that you good at.
When is a strength not a strength?
If you have a competence, talent or skill in something, you are by definition good at it. In positive psychology terms, a strength is most probably something you are good at because you use it a lot but not necessarily! For example, it could be that you have an “unrealised strength” (using R2 terminology), that is, a strength which lies dormant, waiting to be discovered and developed to its maximum potential.
To illustrate this, let’s take the example of somebody who is an excellent organiser. If you want an event to run smoothly, whether it’s a social event, or a community litter-pick, this is the person to contact. The organiser knows exactly who to contact, what to do and how to do it, and the job gets done efficiently and professionally. The right people turn up in the right place at the right time, everyone enjoys themselves and says what a wonderful job the organiser has done.
But does the organiser feel good about organising? Here’s a typical reply where there is a conflict in character strengths:
“No! I know I’m good at organising, and I can do it with my eyes closed. That’s why people always ask me to do it. And it’s pretty easy work, but when I think about it, it doesn’t really feel like me at all. And I don’t feel energised by it, quite the reverse. In fact, I’m absolutely drained by the time it’s all over.” In other words, this individual has a competence in organising, but it is not one of the person’s strengths.
Benefits of playing to your strengths
There is growing empirical evidence to suggest that using your strengths every day is beneficial to your psychological wellbeing in a number of different ways, such as:
. Increased resilience. People who use their strengths more are better able to bounce back from adversity in their lives.
. Increased vitality. Using your strengths is associated with higher levels of positive energy.
. Decreased stress. Higher use of strengths predicts lower stress over time.
. Increased confidence and self-esteem. Using your strengths more is associated with both increased self-efficacy and self-esteem.
. Increased happiness. Using your strengths in new ways is associated with increased wellbeing over the longer term.
Not only does playing to your strengths improve your wellbeing, research suggests it also improves your performance in work-related activities, makes you more engaged and more likely to achieve your goals. I’m sure readers will agree that these are very compelling reasons to identify your strengths and start using them more, in whatever setting you find yourself in.
A word about weaknesses
Whilst empirical research confirms the long-term wellbeing benefits of identifying and playing to your strengths, there are two important caveats to take into consideration.
Firstly, it’s likely that you’ll have strengths in some areas and weaknesses in others. If you complete the VIA Inventory mentioned earlier in this article you will know which strengths energise you and which one’s don’t. The ones at the bottom of your VIA list are not necessarily weaknesses, rather they are strengths that you probably haven’t used very much because they don’t energise you. It may be that you can get through life perfectly well without paying much attention to the ones at the bottom of your list. However, this may not always be the case. If, for example, they include leadership and social intelligence and you work as a team leader, then to be fully effective you may need to try to develop them in some ways. You could do some additional training, with a coach or mentor who specialises in that field, or work with colleagues who have complementary strengths which you can draw on as and when you need to.
Secondly, you need to bear in mind that it’s possible to overdo or overuse a strength, and when this happens, the strength paradoxically becomes a weakness. Strengthscope ™ calls this “strengths in overdrive”. As an example, if you overuse the strength of courage, you may find yourself taking unnecessary risks or challenges that have a high chance of failure, and others may perceive you as reckless, impulsive or foolhardy. It’s worth remembering, then, to use a little old-fashioned common sense when considering how and when to play to your strengths.
In Summary
. Using your strengths has been shown in research to lead to higher wellbeing over the longer term.
. Using your strengths will not feel like a chore. On the contrary, you will feel excited, eager and exhilarated.
. Playing to your strengths leads to improved performance.
. Use common-sense when deciding how and when to play to your strengths in order to avoid overdoing them.
. The basic VIA Inventory of Strengths is free to use. By completing it you’ll also be contributing to essential academic research.
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