Committed!

Committed!

“And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: 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: ” Ruth 1:16 KJV

This is the story of one of the most painful experiences of a Jew recorded in the bible. Here was a man and wife, with two sons, in a famine in their own land. As all men do when there is inconvenience, you seek alternative accommodation. This man took his family out of Bethlehem into the land of Moab. It must be said that Moabites at the time were under strict instructions not to be allowed to enter into the congregation of the Lord, even to their tenth generation. This was a land that had opposed Israel as it journeyed through the wilderness, and had hired Balaam to curse the people of Israel. This was the dilemma that this family had to navigate. It was easy going in, but then marriage occurred. How would these boys bring back these Moabite women without offending God's instructions?

Unfortunately, as the events lay out, the man who took the decision to leave Bethlehem never returned. He, along with his two sons, died in the land of Moab. We do not know what led to their deaths, but this is where the story gets personal: the wife had to return to Bethlehem empty. In her own words, she left full but was returning empty. She left as Naomi which meant pleasantness, and was returning as Mara, which meant bitterness. What was not clear to her was what God was working out in the background, starting with the people that would normally not be allowed to enter into the camp of God's people. Life will happen to the best of us; this mortal body is bound to decay, and must give way to the immortal body that God has prepared for us.

As we prepare for the eternal, what decisions and actions do we need to take today? Ruth may not have known about God’s instructions about her race, but she had seen something in the woman Naomi. She must have watched her lifestyle choices and seen her serve the God of Israel, even in a foreign land. Is my service to God situational or circumstantial? Am I waiting for good weather before I commit to a life of devotion to God? Am I a child of God only when eyes are on me? Am I only in it for what I can get out of it? Naomi was in Moab due to circumstances beyond her control, but she did not let the hostile environment define her commitment. Her life was the example that helped Ruth take a step that led to the eternal dynasty that she became a part of.

The time came for hard decisions. Orpah and Ruth were from Moab; they did not have children for Naomi's sons. There was nothing tying them down. Ruth had seen something that she wanted to be a part of, and she said the immortal words of today's extract. She was not going to be deterred. Her fellow Moabitess had left and gone back to her gods; Ruth had come to know the God of Israel and nothing was going to make her turn back. As I have come to know this God, is there anything in all of creation that is strong enough to distract me? This story reminds me of the power of God's covenant; it is by faith alone. Birth is nice, but knowing and following God is critical. Do you know this God? Does He know you as His own? Can He command total allegiance from me? God's time of favour is here.