Ruth 4:13-17
So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the LORD enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the LORD, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.” Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him. The women living there said, “Naomi has a son!” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David. Ruth 4:13-17
As I think back to the tragic opening of the book of Ruth: the devastating family loss, the excruciating pain, and the heartache that Naomi must have had meant that not only were her family members dead, but her future was too. What a sick feeling. Some of you reading this, have experienced painful loss in your family and for that, I am sorry. God cares deeply about families and passionately cares about you. You may be going through an unbelievably difficult crisis and wondering where God is in all of it. Guess what? It’s ok for you to wonder that. Let me share with you: for the people of God, pain and sorrow is NEVER the final word. God sees you and God loves you. You are never left to navigate life alone. Please don’t isolate, please don’t try to do this on your own. Phone a friend, call the church, better yet, come to a Sunday Gathering and connect with others. Emmanuel is here for you.
This book, this story, it’s not just a story of good feels and romance. It is an incredible redemption story about a loving God whose faithfulness is unrelenting. An “aha” story about the legal roadmap of our salvation. Friend, I encourage you to take twenty minutes and read the entirety of this book again and you’ll see something amazing; the blood relative, the price, the willingness, the public gate, . . . and it all leads to the cross. Today’s reading ended with the birth of Obed, who was the father of Jesse, the father of David. This is not only the birth of a child, but the birth of a legacy that would ultimately lead to the Messiah himself. Hallelujah, God’s ways are not our ways.
Did you see this turnaround coming? It’s the greatest love story ever told, and a beautiful Joyride for Naomi indeed!
As I think back to the tragic opening of the book of Ruth: the devastating family loss, the excruciating pain, and the heartache that Naomi must have had meant that not only were her family members dead, but her future was too. What a sick feeling. Some of you reading this, have experienced painful loss in your family and for that, I am sorry. God cares deeply about families and passionately cares about you. You may be going through an unbelievably difficult crisis and wondering where God is in all of it. Guess what? It’s ok for you to wonder that. Let me share with you: for the people of God, pain and sorrow is NEVER the final word. God sees you and God loves you. You are never left to navigate life alone. Please don’t isolate, please don’t try to do this on your own. Phone a friend, call the church, better yet, come to a Sunday Gathering and connect with others. Emmanuel is here for you.
This book, this story, it’s not just a story of good feels and romance. It is an incredible redemption story about a loving God whose faithfulness is unrelenting. An “aha” story about the legal roadmap of our salvation. Friend, I encourage you to take twenty minutes and read the entirety of this book again and you’ll see something amazing; the blood relative, the price, the willingness, the public gate, . . . and it all leads to the cross. Today’s reading ended with the birth of Obed, who was the father of Jesse, the father of David. This is not only the birth of a child, but the birth of a legacy that would ultimately lead to the Messiah himself. Hallelujah, God’s ways are not our ways.
Did you see this turnaround coming? It’s the greatest love story ever told, and a beautiful Joyride for Naomi indeed!
Posted in Devotional