I absolutely love the book of Ruth. Such a short book, but so full. Every time I read it, I find something new that I haven't seen before. I mean, that's the way it is with any book of the Bible, but I notice it a lot more with Ruth.
Last night, I was reading Ruth (though, if you haven't figured that out yet, you might as well not be reading this...). When Boaz meets Ruth, she asks him what she has done to find such favour in his eyes. He tells her that he has heard what she has done for Naomi since both of them became widows. The following verses are what he says to her:
Ruth 2:11b-12 "How you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”
I guess it caught my attention, because it was talking about her leaving her Mother and Father and her homeland. It sort of resonates.
But how incredible would it be to make that kind of impact on people? That complete strangers know your story? Granted, the town was probably small, and everyone knew everyone's business, but really, most people would still look at Ruth as a foreigner, who was somewhere she had no business being. But Boaz saw why she had come, and honoured her and protected her because of that.
And that makes me think of the story in Acts, where Paul is leaving the Ephesian elders, never to see them again:
Acts 20:36-38 When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.
I've sort of wondered since the first time I read that, if I will ever make such an impact. The elders weren't just kids crying because it was an emotional parting. They were adults; leaders of their community, and they were grieving, because they would not see Paul again. Will I make that kind of difference in the places I go? Not that I want to make people sad, but I want what I do to affect people, and last. Or rather, I want what God does through me to affect people. If it's just what I am doing, I might as well give up now.
And how do I do that? How do I change lives? How do I let go of any agenda I might have, and throw myself wholeheartedly into the plans that God has for me? It takes thought and deliberation, I know that. Something to work on.
Last night, I was reading Ruth (though, if you haven't figured that out yet, you might as well not be reading this...). When Boaz meets Ruth, she asks him what she has done to find such favour in his eyes. He tells her that he has heard what she has done for Naomi since both of them became widows. The following verses are what he says to her:
Ruth 2:11b-12 "How you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”
I guess it caught my attention, because it was talking about her leaving her Mother and Father and her homeland. It sort of resonates.
But how incredible would it be to make that kind of impact on people? That complete strangers know your story? Granted, the town was probably small, and everyone knew everyone's business, but really, most people would still look at Ruth as a foreigner, who was somewhere she had no business being. But Boaz saw why she had come, and honoured her and protected her because of that.
And that makes me think of the story in Acts, where Paul is leaving the Ephesian elders, never to see them again:
Acts 20:36-38 When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.
I've sort of wondered since the first time I read that, if I will ever make such an impact. The elders weren't just kids crying because it was an emotional parting. They were adults; leaders of their community, and they were grieving, because they would not see Paul again. Will I make that kind of difference in the places I go? Not that I want to make people sad, but I want what I do to affect people, and last. Or rather, I want what God does through me to affect people. If it's just what I am doing, I might as well give up now.
And how do I do that? How do I change lives? How do I let go of any agenda I might have, and throw myself wholeheartedly into the plans that God has for me? It takes thought and deliberation, I know that. Something to work on.
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