And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. — Ruth 3:8
Ruth’s journey is quite interesting to say the least. It all starts with a famine in the land, and Elimelech and his wife Naomi take their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, and head back in the direction of Egypt to Moab. May I say that things never get better when you head back toward the place God delivered you from?
It is here that Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, dies, leaving her with two sons. Mahlon and Chilion took wives of the people of Moab. It is recorded they dwelt there about ten years, and the sons die. It is here that Naomi decides to return to Judah. Naomi looks at her two daughters-in-law and says, “You need to return to your mother’s house.” Orpah does just that. She gives Naomi a kiss and returns, but Ruth clave unto Naomi. She said, “For whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried.”
It started off about Naomi’s son. Then it became about a family. Then it was about her people. Lastly, it became about Naomi’s God to the point of risking it all to go from being an outcast to being a part of something great. Ruth knew that night when she lay across the feet of Boaz that it was life or death. An act of this magnitude was sure death if Boaz did not accept her. In doing this, she becomes one of the five women of faith mentioned in Matthew 1 in the lineage of Jesus Christ.
When is the last time you were willing to lay it all on the line to see something greater happen in your life?
Our prayer for you this week: May you be willing to risk it all to change not only your future, but also the future of many.
