Readings for today: Ruth 1-4
I love the book of Ruth. It’s a reminder that even in the midst of the most horrific circumstances, God is always at work. Even when things look dark and bleak, God’s light begins to shine through. The Book of Ruth takes place in the time of the judges. It doesn’t tell us which judge but we know from what we’ve just read this week that the “time of the judges” was a time of great hardship and suffering in Israel, most of it self-inflicted. The time of the judges was a time of great idolatry and sin in Israel. It was a time when terrible crimes were committed. Crimes against humanity and genocide. It was a time of hardship and pain and suffering as nation after nation attacked Israel and enslaved them. It was a time of political upheaval and uncertainty as leaders came and went. But even in the midst of the chaos, God was moving.
How was God moving? The way He always does…through human families. Elimelech marries Naomi. They have two boys named Mahlon and Chilion. Life is good until a famine hits their hometown. They move to another country. They settle in. The boys marry women. Elimelech dies. Mahlon and Chilion die. The women are left destitute. The famine ends. Naomi moves back home. One daughter-in-law stays in Moab, the other refuses to leave her side. The two women come back into town, hoping to find support from their extended family. Boaz enters the picture. A prominent man who was a relative of Elimelech. Ruth gleans in his fields. He notices her. Protects her. Provides for her. Marries her. They have a son named Obed.
It all seems so mundane. So ordinary. And it is. Because that’s how God works. Behind the scenes. Under the surface. Often in ways we cannot see or understand. Naomi and Ruth had no idea when they returned to Bethlehem what God had in store for them. Boaz had no idea as he threshed his grain what God had in store for him. Boaz and Ruth had no idea what God had in store for their son, Obed. I imagine Obed and Jesse and even David himself had no idea what God had in store for them. They were simply living life. Managing their day to day. Never knowing what part they had to play in the great salvation plan of God.
God is still moving, friends. Amidst all the chaos and hardship and suffering and pain and injustice and violence in our world. It’s easy to lose hope when we watch the news or scroll through social media. But the Lord is present, as He always is. He is working through regular, ordinary people like you and me. He is working through our families. Working in our lives. Working right alongside us as we manage our day to day. We may never know the part we have to play in the great salvation plan of God but God does! And God will make sure to bring to completion the work He’s begun in and through us.
Readings for tomorrow: No devotionals on Sundays