This Week's Focal Passage:
"So she fell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, "Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?" Ruth 2:10
I have had the privilege and the blessing of writing a study of the book of Ruth and leading the Ladies' Sunday school class through it over the past two months. Now, I do not say this to bring any attention to myself, I simply mention this because this devotion is a continuation of what I began writing about in a previous devotion. A few months ago, the Lord began convicting my heart that I was focusing more on preparing lessons for other people instead of studying His Word for my own personal life application and spiritual growth.
The Lord began to use Psalm 42:1 ("As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God.") to draw me closer to Him. I began praying for the Lord to change my focus and to teach me through His Word. God graciously allowed me to prepare lessons to share with the ladies but this time my focus was not on "preparing to teach" but "preparing to LEARN." The insight that our ladies at church have, the depth of their own personal relationship with the Lord, and their willingness to be a vessel for the Lord to display His work has been such an enormous blessing to me and I have learned so much.
I love our focal passage. "So she fell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, "Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?" (Ruth 2:10) Ruth had found favor in the eyes of Boaz and he allowed her to glean in his fields and invited her to join his women each day. He offered her provision and protection. Ruth was overwhelmed by Boaz's compassion, grace and mercy, and fell down before him in pure thanksgiving. Remember, Ruth was a foreigner and there were laws mandating that she be given any more than a few leftovers along the corners of the fields.
The book of Ruth is a precious story of faithfulness, love, and loyalty. Until our class began studying this book in-depth, I always thought the story was about Ruth. But as all the books of Scripture, the more we dig deep into the pages and the context, we see that the entire Word of God is about the Lord God. God's handprints are all over the life of Ruth and the faithfulness, love, and loyalty were not only displays of Ruth's character but the display of God's character! I love that about our God…HE is alive and active and we cannot help but see Him in all things when we look for Him. God graciously uses Ruth to teach each of us more about Him.
God's faithfulness is poured out upon His children. "…The LORD will give grace and glory; No good thing will He withhold From those who walk uprightly" (Psalm 84:11). God's desire for us is to walk in a right relationship with Him and to love Him, honor Him, glorify Him in all that we do, in all that we say, in all that we think, and in all that we love. As God's children, we are foreigners in this world. We have been placed here for "such a time as this." Nothing about you is by chance. God purposefully and specifically designed every fiber of your being, ordained every breath that you take, orchestrated every detail of your life, and calls you to glorify Him in unique ways.
How are you walking with the Lord? Are you walking by faith and trusting in Him to guide and direct each step? Or do you focus on the circumstances that surround you and out of fear try to determine the best path to take? God's will for you is to live by faith in Him alone and to "be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God" (Philippians 4:6).
Ruth is a precious example of a life surrendered to the Lord God. Her surroundings, her circumstances, her mood, and/or her success did not determine her faith in the Lord God. Her faith was rooted and established in who God was, is and always will be. Her trust in Him rested solely upon His promises and her belief that HE was faithful. Ruth was able to display faithfulness, love, and loyalty because she had learned them from her Father and HE used her to display Himself to those around her.
You see, Ruth prepared to LEARN not to teach yet the Lord God used her to teach all of us more about Himself. My Friend, we do not have to have a teaching title to be a teacher. Anytime we follow the Lord God and surrender our entire lives to Him, He uses us as examples to point others to Him and HE draws us closer to Himself as well. May each of us bow before the Lord God and allow Him to teach us how to dig deep into His Word. May we be well equipped to live in such a way that leads others to the cross where complete healing, complete forgiveness, and absolute love and acceptance await. All glory and honor and praise to our Lord in heaven!! Thank you for allowing me to share my heart with you today. You are a gift to me and I appreciate you studying God's Word with me so very much!!
