Ruth: God's Blessings in Hindsight

Ruth: God's Blessings in Hindsight

Ruth clings to Naomi; Orpah is satisfied with saying goodbye and remaining in Moab. Ruth tells Naomi that she will remain loyal and devoted, saying to Naomi, “Your people will be my people; your God will be my God” (Ruth 1:16). Because of Ruth’s humble love and selfless devotion, she sacrifices living among her own people to live in a foreign land.

Ruth’s humility and devotion are attributes we should strive for in our devotion to Jesus Christ.  Ruth says, for instance, “Wherever you go, I will go . . . whenever you die, I will die.” This is total surrender and how we should approach our relationship with Christ.  His will, not ours.

The following are some parallel verses:

• (Luke 9:23):  In following Christ, we are called to take up our cross and forget ourselves. Ruth does this and the reward is beyond imagination. She becomes the grandmother to David and is in the family line of St. Joseph, Jesus’ foster father.
• (Luke 9:57-62): When we follow Christ, it is all or nothing. We cannot look back, question our old ways, or consider whether we should postpone discipleship. Ruth shows complete devotion and abandonment of self in her walk with Naomi.
• (Luke 14: 25-33): Jesus reminds us that no one can be his disciple unless he first counts the cost and devotes everything to Jesus, leaving behind property and even family. Ruth puts this into practice by leaving her homeland and Orpah, her only sister, to devote her life to Naomi. Ruth, moreover, is the model of a disciple.

Like Ruth gleaning in Boaz’s field and receiving God’s blessing, I, too, have been in many places where God has blessed me. One place particularly in time was during my college years.  I was a young single dad, too shy to ask girls out on dates and too embarrassed to experience rejection.  By being at the college I attended, however, I indirectly met Dana, my lovely wife and the mother of my children. Dana’s friend, who I met through a mutual college friend, introduced us. After we met, moreover, we dated, became engaged, and married. Currently we are raising a beautiful family.  And, in time, God would rescue us by His grace into a life of faith in Christ. God’s blessing is so clear, and to think I did not even acknowledge His hand in this for so many years amazes me. Thanks to the rescue God provides daily in the gifts of faith, hope, and love, our lives are blessed. This was Boaz’s field for me.