Prayer – For God’s Sake

The following is from Jon…

Matthew 6:9-13
9Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be your name. 10Your kingdom come, Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11Give us this day our daily bread, 12And forgive us our debts, As we also have forgiven our debtors. 13And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil.

We are all familiar with the Lords pray, but do we really know what it’s in the Bible for? It’s there because Jesus was asked how we should pray, so He gave us this prayer as a good example on how our prayer should be, hence the, “Pray then like this”.

Breaking down the Lords pray verse by verse;
Verse 9: …Our Father in heaven,…
Explanation: This is the part of the prayer where we are to greet God however you feel comfortable while still being reverent to Him. Personally I like to greet God like this in my prayers… “Hey God how you doing today?”.
Verse 9: …Hallowed be Your name.
Explanation: This part of the pray is where we are to praise, glorify, and honor God as well as thank him for the wonderful and not so wonderful things in our life and the lives of those around us. Now I’m sure you all are wondering why we should thank God if something not so wonderful happens in our lives like being made fun of or our grandparents dying or even an unsaved person dying. Well, the answer to that is rather simple but at the same time hard to accept at times. We are to praise God for everything that happens in our lives because nothing is outside of His will and everything that happens, happens to bring more honor and glory to His name and kingdom.

Verse 10: Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Explanation: One thing that I really want to stress in this part of the prayer is the “Your will be done”. Too many times have I heard prayers and even prayed myself like this “God, please heal my friend for he is sick and doesn’t know You yet and if he dies he will surely go to hell.” And then we simply move on to our next item to pray about, how selfish of us to pray like this! Now, I’m not saying it’s wrong to ask God for things like this, because we should! But the most important part of that prayer is missing, if we were to follow the example of Jesus’ prayer, the very next thing in that prayer should be something like this “But God, I know that you have a plan that I do not understand, and as much as I want my friend to be healed and saved from hell, please let Your will be done with this…” In everything we ask of God we are to ask that God’s will be done, not ours!

Verse 11: Give us this day our daily bread,
Explanation: This is where we simply ask for the necessities of life, such as food, water, clothes, and a roof over our heads. But there is one more thing that needs to be fed daily; can you guess what it is? Our Spirit needs to be fed daily. If you’ve ever seen the “Christian Spiritual Chart” it’s pretty much a chart that has a baby on the very left, next to it is a teen, next to the teen is an adult, and next to the adult is a warrior. This is a good example of how much that person’s Spirit got fed by the Bible. If we read the Bible daily, our Spirit will grow strong like the warrior/adult and when hard times come we will be able to stand our ground. But if we read the bible now and maybe once a week, our Spirit will be as a baby so that when hard times come we will be defeated in seconds and fall to sin. So, here is what this prayer is also talking about. We are to ask God that he would help remind us and give us time to read our Bibles, and that He would to speak to us through His word so that we may understand and apply to our life what He is saying to us.

Verse 12: And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Explanation: This is very simple; ask for God to forgive you for your sins on a daily basis. And ask for courage to forgive those who do wrong against you. In verse 15 it goes on to say that if we forgive others’ debts against us He will forgive our debts, but if we do not forgive others’ debts He will not forgive ours.

Verse 13: And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Explanation: This is pretty much where we are to ask that God would help us to not sin and to stay away from things that would grieve His heart.

You don’t have to pray in this exact order every day; it is, however, a good example / outline of how we should pray. When you pray, remember these things: Prayer is all about God and bringing more honor, glory, power, and praise to His name, and furthering His kingdom. It’s not just about us and what we want, it’s all about Him and how we can love and serve Him better.

Fear and Trust

Matthew 14:22-33 Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. 25 And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” 28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

I don’t care who you are, you might the world’s craziest extreme-sports enthusiast; you might be the original daredevil supreme; or maybe you’re just mister tough guy that has convinced everyone at school that no matter what the situation, you are always cool as ice. Ahhh…bull! Everyone knows what fear is! And everyone knows it because they experience it more often then they let on. It’s just something we all have in common. If we sat down and talked through everything you did today from the moment you woke up until now, I bet we’d find plenty of stuff you did out of a little bit of fear. Maybe you made a last minute outfit change as you were walking out the door this morning because you were afraid what people might think or say if you wore what you’d had on before. Maybe you straightened up your room because you feared the war that if Dad came home and saw the hurricane damage (or what looked like hurricane damage) that ripped through there. Maybe you avoided someone or a group of people at school because you feared how they might treat you.

And you know what? It’s okay to have fears. I know we’re told all the time how we need to conquer our fears and stop being afraid of whatever it is we’re afraid of. And okay, maybe some of our fears don’t need to be there, but for the most part its actually okay to be afraid.

What I love about today’s passage is the idea of Jesus walking out on top of this most dreadful of scenes. You know the story: the disciples are out in a life-threatening storm. They’ve been battling the waves and the wind to the point of exhaustion and are every bit as far out to sea as when they started. And to top it all off, people back then had weird superstitions about the sea which led to even more fear of it. But then in the midst of all this, here’s comes Jesus, waltzing out, un-phased by the raging wind and daunting waves, walking right across the water. This isn’t just some nifty little trick Jesus can do. It’s a demonstration to the disciples that He is so much bigger than their deepest fears.

And notice what Jesus says to Peter after he starts to sink in fear. It’s not, “Why did you fear, Peter?” Rather, He says, “Why did you doubt?” There’s a big difference. Again, Jesus is not expecting to never experience fear or never find ourselves in fearful situations. The issue is, will we trust Him when we’re in the midst of those situations. I think He’s certainly proving Himself worthy of being trusted. He’s demonstrated that He (not us!) has conquered and overcome every fearful situation. There is no situation that has Him beet.

So the question for you and me: in the midst of fearful situations will we trust the One who claims to be our Savior?

From Rags to…

Ruth 4:13-22 So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. Then he went to her, and the LORD enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. 14 The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the LORD, who this day has not left you without a kinsman-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! 15 He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.” 16 Then Naomi took the child, laid him in her lap and cared for him. 17 The women living there said, “Naomi has a son.” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David. 18 This, then, is the family line of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron, 19 Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab, 20 Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, 21 Salmon the father of Boaz, Boaz the father of Obed, 22 Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David.

Finally we come to the end of our story with Ruth, Boaz, and Naomi. And okay, these final verses may not seem all that great just by themselves, but you have to remember the context of the whole story here. Naomi and Ruth started out just having lost their husbands and children. They have no descendants, no family to belong to. They were as good as dead. Naomi’s exact words (back in chapter one): “Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.”

When you remember all that, what we see happening in these final verses is really neat actually. Ruth and Naomi have become part of a family again. They belong to a loving, caring, and supporting group of people. They have a descendant now. And check it out! This is no ordinary descendant. This is a royal offspring. This child will be the grandfather of the King David, the greatest king in whole the history of Israel! And of course, trace that line on down even further and eventually you’ll come across the name Jesus who we’re told descended from the line of David.

So really, this is a resurrection story of sorts. No, they never actually died. But again, by ancient standards, they might as well have. They went from life that was empty, hopeless, desperate, and downright miserable to one that is now full of rich blessing, of belonging, of hope and real joy. Its new life in a very real sense.

When we started this book, one question we had to ask was: what will we learn about God from this story? Well here’s one answer: God is in the business of doing resurrections – of bringing about wonderful new life in people. Think of how our own story is a bit similar to Ruth and Naomi’s. Just think of how lost, desperate, disconnected, and hopeless we used to be because of all the messed up sin that ruled our heart and lives. But God in His mercy chose to love us! He graciously adopted us to be part of His great family. He forgave us and started to change our hearts and free us from some of that devastating sin. He gave us hope and promise of an awesome future with Him for all eternity. Or as we often say around here, He gave us new life!

And then the other thing we see in the story is how that mercy and compassion often comes through other people being used in our lives. Boaz represents a true member of God’s family or a true “Christian” we could say in that he is willing to serve as an instrument of God’s mercy. God’s mercy comes to Ruth and Naomi through Boaz’s love and compassion, his willingness to be the kinsman redeemer. So again, two things: (1) God’s plan of redemption is a beautiful story wherever it unfolds. It is one that we are always so very thankful to be a part of. And (2), being a part of that redeemed family means being a servant of God’s mercy.

I hope we’ll take those two things with us as we continue to prepare for and head out (in less than a month!) for our summer mission trips. I hope we’ll never ceased to be amazed with our great God and His miraculous and faithful love for His people. And I hope it’s always our desire to act as true adopted sons and daughters, ones willing and committed to showing God’s love and mercy to others…because of how wonderfully it has been shown to us!

Ruth 4 – The Cost of Redemption

Ruth 4:1-11 1 Meanwhile Boaz went up to the town gate and sat there. When the kinsman-redeemer he had mentioned came along, Boaz said, “Come over here, my friend, and sit down.” So he went over and sat down. 2 Boaz took ten of the elders of the town and said, “Sit here,” and they did so. 3 Then he said to the kinsman-redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from Moab, is selling the piece of land that belonged to our brother Elimelech. 4 I thought I should bring the matter to your attention and suggest that you buy it in the presence of these seated here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, do so. But if you will not, tell me, so I will know. For no one has the right to do it except you, and I am next in line.” “I will redeem it,” he said. 5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the land from Naomi and from Ruth the Moabitess, you acquire the dead man’s widow, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property.” 6 At this, the kinsman-redeemer said, “Then I cannot redeem it because I might endanger my own estate. You redeem it yourself. I cannot do it.” 7 (Now in earlier times in Israel, for the redemption and transfer of property to become final, one party took off his sandal and gave it to the other. This was the method of legalizing transactions in Israel.) 8 So the kinsman-redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it yourself.” And he removed his sandal. 9 Then Boaz announced to the elders and all the people, “Today you are witnesses that I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelech, Kilion and Mahlon. 10 I have also acquired Ruth the Moabitess, Mahlon’s widow, as my wife, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property, so that his name will not disappear from among his family or from the town records. Today you are witnesses!” 11 Then the elders and all those at the gate said, “We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you have standing in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem.

So here’s the scene: in ancient days, when you died your land was given over to the nearest family member (nearest of kin). Naomi is probably an old lady at this point who can’t really go out and work the field that belonged to her and her dead husband. And yes, she has Ruth now, but even Ruth can’t work the field buy herself. So Naomi decides, why not sell it and at least get a little money to support her and Ruth. According to the law though, land had to stay in the family. So the land was offered for sale to the nearest family member first and then on down the line. The dude in this chapter (not Boaz, the other guy) sees an opportunity to enlarge the size of his estate and inheritance. So, “yeah sure, I’ll buy it,” he says. At this point Boaz kindly reminds him of the other part of the deal: it’s also the responsibility of the nearest of kin to raise up a descendant and heir for the family. “So let me get this straight, I have to buy the land and get married to someone in Naomi’s immediate family and raise up a kid so he can re-inherit the land? Uhhh…no thanks, you do it.”

A bit complicated I know. Here’s the main issue: Naomi is a widow. She has no husband, no family, and no children to carry on her family name. Back then it was a horrible misfortune to have no children or descendants to carry the name. The guy in the story realizes its a bit of bum deal to have to shell out his own cash to buy land that one day will have to be given back to a child he raises for Naomi’s family.

But Boaz on the other hand demonstrates some self-less sacrifice and is willing to be the kinsman redeemer for Naomi and her family (which includes Ruth). I hate to burst the tender, sappy bubble here, but the book of Ruth really isn’t about a romantic love story between Ruth and Boaz. Its a story about faithfulness and of loving kindness towards family and also those in desperate need. In this chapter, Boaz is the faithful kinsman redeemer who basically is willing to sacrifice financially to protect these helpless widows and preserve their family name.

As we wind down to the final verses in the book, the question we’ll want to start asking ourselves here is what do we learn about God from this interesting story? What do we learn about what it means to be associated with God and a part of His family, His kingdom? What do we learn from Ruth, from Boaz, from the drama that takes place in Naomi’s life? And hang in here, because the best part of the story is still yet to come.

Ruth 3 – Wings of Redemption

Ruth 3:1-18 One day Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, should I not try to find a home for you, where you will be well provided for? 2 Is not Boaz, with whose servant girls you have been, a kinsman of ours? Tonight he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor. 3 Wash and perfume yourself, and put on your best clothes. Then go down to the threshing floor, but don’t let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking. 4 When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do.” 5 “I will do whatever you say,” Ruth answered. 6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did everything her mother-in-law told her to do. 7 When Boaz had finished eating and drinking and was in good spirits, he went over to lie down at the far end of the grain pile. Ruth approached quietly, uncovered his feet and lay down. 8 In the middle of the night something startled the man, and he turned and discovered a woman lying at his feet. 9 “Who are you?” he asked. “I am your servant Ruth,” she said. “Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a kinsman-redeemer.” 10 “The LORD bless you, my daughter,” he replied. “This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor. 11 And now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All my fellow townsmen know that you are a woman of noble character. 12 Although it is true that I am near of kin, there is a kinsman-redeemer nearer than I. 13 Stay here for the night, and in the morning if he wants to redeem, good; let him redeem. But if he is not willing, as surely as the LORD lives I will do it. Lie here until morning.” 14 So she lay at his feet until morning, but got up before anyone could be recognized; and he said, “Don’t let it be known that a woman came to the threshing floor.” 15 He also said, “Bring me the shawl you are wearing and hold it out.” When she did so, he poured into it six measures of barley and put it on her. Then he went back to town. 16 When Ruth came to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, “How did it go, my daughter?” Then she told her everything Boaz had done for her 17 and added, “He gave me these six measures of barley, saying, ‘Don’t go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” 18 Then Naomi said, “Wait, my daughter, until you find out what happens. For the man will not rest until the matter is settled today.”

This is one of those “interesting” little scenes from the Bible. It is the high point in this cute love story taking place and its actually a bit comical. Boaz has contently drifted off to sleep after some good food and drink. In comes the sneaky young lady who cuddles up alongside him. Boaz startles and asks the obvious question: “Hee hee, that tickles. Hey!.. What?…who are you!! Ruth replies, “It’s me. Would you hurry up and propose to me already, you be lug?” In the olden days, instead of handing out a ring, the gentleman spread the wing of his garment across the lady as a sign of proposal. So Ruth definitely knows what she’s asking for when she asks for the corner of his garment.

I won’t say too much here, but I’ll ask you to notice all the “redemption” language throughout the passage. And so think for a minute: what does this little scene between Ruth and Boaz have to do with redemption? How is Boaz spreading his wing over Ruth and perhaps later marrying her an way of redeeming Ruth? Why is he called her kinsman redeemer? What does redemption even mean here in this passage.

These Old Feet

The following is from Lori…

I have the ugliest feet in the world. Mark my words – put them next to anyone’s (well, besides my husband’s) and they are the ugliest. Barely any toenails, toes go the wrong way, etc. You get the picture. They don’t look like the pics you see in the magazines with girls with beautiful long toes with perfectly manicured nails. Yet I’ve sung a song at many weddings that says:

“….How beautiful the feet that bring
the sound of good news
and the love of the King….”

Makes me think. Isaiah 52:7 says, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaims peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation….”
And Romans 10:14-15 says: “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!”

My feet? Right….. Must mean someone else. No, God’s word says that the feet of those who preach the gospel of Jesus Christ are beautiful (Farrell paraphrase). Makes me do more thinking (ouch). We are about to embark on a journey that will change many lives. Not just those who we are being sent to serve, but our own lives as well. Our feet will be going to the Dominican Republic to help, serve, aid and tell. Since Jerry’s visit, I can’t even stop thinking about what may be in store for all of us as we go to a place God has called us to. We have all probably been called for different reasons. But each of us has a chance to make an incredible difference. To preach the gospel of peace in one way or another. My heart is already so burdened for these children who will need our help in ways we can only imagine. Children and families who have nothing compared to what we have. Mothers who need to know their child is not an outcast. Babies who haven’t been loved because of the way they were conceived. Little boys who can’t throw a baseball because their hands may not be able to grip one. Little girls who have no toenails to even paint…..Yeah. Just a few things going through my mind while I’m trying to sleep at night. I hope so badly that I can wrap my arms around just one suffering individual and just cry with them and let them know HOW MUCH Jesus loves them. Jesus has done SO MUCH for me, the little I can offer to another person is nothing in comparison.

This place has already touched my heart in a way I never felt possible. I’ve never really thought much of missions. I figure I have such a vast mission field in my own neighborhood, I don’t ever need to leave it. But yet God has placed this burden on me, our family, and all of you. We need to be ready.

As we prepare for our trip, the shots, the passports, more shots….let’s not forget what needs to be prepared the most. Our hearts. Our hearts need to be ready for whatever God will have in store for us. Our feet are going to be very busy. My prayer is that my heart is even more so.

Ruth – the Next Chapter (part 2)

Sorry to leave everyone hanging there for a few days. Great comments so far on chapter 2. I’d just like to add one or two things today to some of those comments that have already been made. So in case you haven’t popped in here in a while, go back and read the last post (which was just the second chapter of Ruth) and the comments others posted to it.

The comments gave great reminders of how the Lord is compassionate and provides for Ruth as she is faithful and stays alongside her mother in law. Its such an important remind about who God is that needs to be kept in minds all the time. Being faithful is often scary business in the sense it could mean real sacrifice, it could mean hardship or ridicule. We fear the other side of faithfulness – what will happen to me if I am faithful to God here? This is why we have to remember what God has shown us about Himself time and time again, all throughout the story of the Bible – that He is all the more faithful and committed to us as we give ourselves in faith to Him.

But let me add one thing to the discussion here: Notice that God’s provision for Ruth comes through the faithfulness of Boaz. What do I mean by that? Well, to be a child of God in the Old Testament meant a lot of things. You were part of a chosen people. You enjoyed intimate fellowship with God. You received blessing and promises from God. But it also meant you were to be someone who looked after the cause of the oppressed and afflicted. The basic identity of an Israelite was an oppressed and insignificant slave of Egypt turned beloved child of God’s mercy and blessing. And as someone who’d experienced that deep mercy of God in their own time of suffering, they were called to show that same mercy and compassion to others who were struggling, who were poor and weak or without much hope. Do a search sometime of how many verses in the Old Testament contain the words fatherless and widow.

Here’s just one example from Deuteronomy: (Deuteronomy 24:19-22) When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the alien, the fatherless and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. That is why I command you to do this.

All that to say, we see in Boaz the example of a model Israelite. Ruth is a both a widow and an orphan in that her husband has died and she has no father in the land to look after her. She is exactly the type of person the Israelites were to be concerned to look after. Boaz acts as a faithful child of God in providing for Ruth, guaranteeing her protection, and even welcoming her into the family and community.

And…the thing is that this responsibility to search out the poor and needy and show compassion and mercy was not just something for the Israelites in the Old Testament. It was part of Jesus’ ministry. Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, . It was an important responsibility of the early church (read Acts 6). And James tells us, looking after the widows and orphans is really the essence of true religion (James 1:27).

To be a child of God is (1) to be someone who has received immeasurable mercy from a loving Father. And (2) it is a call to be like that Father in searching out those in need of compassion and love and being faithful to step in and be that vessel of God’s blessing in their lives.

Ruth – the Next Chapter

Ruth 2:1-9 Now there was a wealthy and influential man in Bethlehem named Boaz, who was a relative of Naomi’s husband, Elimelech. One day Ruth said to Naomi, “Let me go out into the fields to gather leftover grain behind anyone who will let me do it.” And Naomi said,

“All right, my daughter, go ahead.” So Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters. And as it happened, she found herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz, the relative of her father-in-law, Elimelech. While she was there, Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters.

“The LORD be with you!” he said. “The LORD bless you!” the harvesters replied. Then Boaz asked his foreman, “Who is that girl over there?” And the foreman replied, “She is the young woman from Moab who came back with Naomi. She asked me this morning if she could gather grain behind the harvesters. She has been hard at work ever since, except for a few minutes’ rest over there in the shelter.”

Boaz went over and said to Ruth, “Listen, my daughter. Stay right here with us when you gather grain; don’t go to any other fields. Stay right behind the women working in my field. See which part of the field they are harvesting, and then follow them. I have warned the young men not to bother you. And when you are thirsty, help yourself to the water they have drawn from the well.”

Ruth fell at his feet and thanked him warmly. “Why are you being so kind to me?” she asked. “I am only a foreigner.” “Yes, I know,” Boaz replied. “But I also know about the love and kindness you have shown your mother-in-law since the death of your husband. I have heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers. May the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully.”

“I hope I continue to please you, sir,” she replied. “You have comforted me by speaking so kindly to me, even though I am not as worthy as your workers.”

At lunchtime Boaz called to her, “Come over here and help yourself to some of our food. You can dip your bread in the wine if you like.” So she sat with his harvesters, and Boaz gave her food– more than she could eat. When Ruth went back to work again, Boaz ordered his young men, “Let her gather grain right among the sheaves without stopping her. And pull out some heads of barley from the bundles and drop them on purpose for her. Let her pick them up, and don’t give her a hard time!”

So Ruth gathered barley there all day, and when she beat out the grain that evening, it came to about half a bushel. The carried it back into town and showed it to her mother-in-law. Ruth also gave her the food that was left over from her lunch. “So much!” Naomi exclaimed. “Where did you gather all this grain today? Where did you work? May the LORD bless the one who helped you!” So Ruth told her mother-in-law about the man in whose field she had worked. And she said, “The man I worked with today is named Boaz.”

“May the LORD bless him!” Naomi told her daughter-in-law. “He is showing his kindness to us as well as to your dead husband. That man is one of our closest relatives, one of our family redeemers.”

Then Ruth said, “What’s more, Boaz even told me to come back and stay with his harvesters until the entire harvest is completed.”

“This is wonderful!” Naomi exclaimed. “Do as he said. Stay with his workers right through the whole harvest. You will be safe there, unlike in other fields.” So Ruth worked alongside the women in Boaz’s fields and gathered grain with them until the end of the barley harvest. Then she worked with them through the wheat harvest, too. But all the while she lived with her mother-in-law.

I’ll make some comments on this chapter for tomorrow. But in the meantime, what do you think? What are your impressions from the chapter? Why is this chapter or this little story in God’s Bible? What does He want to show you in this story?

God Alone

The following is a post from Lori…

God constantly challenges us with each second of every day. Some get challenged more than others. Sometimes I feel like I’m just a slow learner so God is extra tough on me….but I seriously know that if my life were easy, I would stray away from God very easily and try things on my own, which we all know would be a total disaster for all involved!

Our family deals with a lot of “picky inny” medical issues. Nothing horribly serious, but just pain in the butt stuff. Court is undergoing some tests this week of a not so pleasant nature. Because we used to live in New Jersey, we kept some of our specialists down there so these tests are performed in NJ. The prep for digestive procedures is not fun. In fact, it’s downright gross. Part of God’s funny sense of humor, I think. And yes, God does have a sense of humor. Anybody looked in the mirror today? (just kidding). We had to be in NJ (Ocean City) very early this a.m. We got up at 3:30 a.m. Got down to the hospital, and we were told we were three hours early, which meant, we could have slept a little longer. Ok, wait three more hours. Court goes back and they begin the procedure, which cannot be completed for reasons I will not elaborate on, but a comedy of errors ensued, well maybe it wasn’t comedy, but you get my point. But now she needs to repeat a more vigorous type prep in the next two days and return for the test again on Thursday. Again? Doesn’t God know we are busy? Doesn’t God care that we have a party and a yard sale on Saturday to prepare for? Doesn’t God care that I work ten hours every day? Doesn’t God care that my daughter is going to get really sick from all these preps? Does God have any idea how tired I am?

The awesome answer would be YES, God does care. Matthew 10:29-31 says, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” He cares about the sparrows, and even the hairs (or lack of hair) on our heads! He sent His Son to die for all of us. Of course He cares! And we know the standard one, “cast all your cares on Him, for He cares for you.” It’s easy to get angry and want to blame someone. Sometimes, things just happen for us to stop long enough to remember who is in control of our lives.

God gave us a beautiful day to drive down. He gave us one on one time to talk, laugh, cry, be angry (yes, I’m sorry to say we were). But God is God. He doesn’t need MY permission to change MY plans, which are usually calculated to the second. He is God. Sometimes we forget. One of my favorite songs is by Phillips, Craig & Dean, called “You are God Alone” – my favorite words are the chorus:

You are not a god created by human hands
You are not a god dependant on any mortal man
You are not a god in need of anything we can give
By your plan, that’s just the way it is.

You are God alone, from before time began
You were on your throne, You are God alone.
And right now, in the good times and bad
You are on your throne, you are God alone.

He cares enough that He brought us together to be a team to do a great work for people He cares for in the Dominican Republic. Let’s start now by praying for each other, our ministry and the people we will be ministering too! As a body, we can do much for Him

Strike Three, You’re…

Ruth 1:8-16 Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back to your mothers’ homes instead of coming with me. And may the LORD reward you for your kindness to your husbands and to me. 9 May the LORD bless you with the security of another marriage.” Then she kissed them good-bye, and they all broke down and wept. 10 “No,” they said. “We want to go with you to your people.” 11 But Naomi replied, “Why should you go on with me? Can I still give birth to other sons who could grow up to be your husbands? 12 No, my daughters, return to your parents’ homes, for I am too old to marry again. And even if it were possible, and I were to get married tonight and bear sons, then what? 13 Would you wait for them to grow up and refuse to marry someone else? No, of course not, my daughters! Things are far more bitter for me than for you, because the LORD himself has caused me to suffer.” 14 And again they wept together, and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-bye. But Ruth insisted on staying with Naomi. 15 “See,” Naomi said to her, “your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods. You should do the same.” 16 But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. I will go wherever you go and live wherever you live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.

Just to review here, the book of Ruth is a wonderful little story that gives us a glimpse into the tender mercy of God and the great hope and new life that He can give to people. In the last Ruth post, I pointed out the utter despair of the opening scene (Fathers and Husbands dying). Any good redemption story has to start out with a scene of desperation, and that’s what we have in this first chapter.

In today’s scene, we see Ruth determined to follow Naomi (her mother-in-law) back to the land of her family (Israel). Ruth, if you remember, is a Moabitess who married Naomi’s sons. Instead of going back to her land of Moab however, she decides she needs to stick with Naomi and return with her to Israel.

But before we assume this is the start of good tidings for Ruth, let me just point out a few things. The Moabites and the Israelites were not exactly the friendliest of neighbors towards each other. They had different cultures, different gods, and they were quite content to steer clear of each other. If you asked an Israelite whether or not a Moabite could ever become part of God’s family, they would have surely said no way! Not those people! Yet, this is exactly what Ruth is looking to do; follow Naomi back to Israel, become a part of her community, and devote herself to the God of Israel. Anyone understanding the situation would read the story at this point and think to themselves, she’s gonna have a hard time doing that. She has no right to think she can just waltz in and join up with God’s chosen people.

A lot of people like to think the book of Ruth is about Ruth; that it’s about her strong faith and devotion to Naomi and to God; that she’s a kind of hero for us all to look up to. Though she might indeed be those things, I’m not so sure that’s what we’re supposed to pick up from this chapter. In fact, it might be just the opposite. I tend to thing the author is trying to show us in Ruth the lowest, most hopeless, most desperate and unlikely person to have anything good happen to her. She’s a woman with no husband, no father or family to protect her, no sons to provide for her, and to top it all off…she’s a Moabitess! I think the real hero of the story has yet to show him/herself.

So again, here’s the question in the opening scenes of the story: what exactly is going to happen to this hopeless, desperate, family-less, unprotected woman from the land of Moab? There’s not a whole lot of personal application we can draw out yet because we’re reading a story and haven’t yet seen the whole drama unfold. But if I wanted to get some questions and issues started, I might ask you to think, where do you see or hear about other people like Ruth in the world you live in? Where are those desperate people without much hope or reason for joy? What should happen to those people? What role might you be called to play in that?