A gem of a journey
The Bible is a great treasure of stories: from the dramatic ups and downs in the life of the nation of Israel as they journey out of Eden, into Egypt and to the Promised Land; to the small, homely stories of one person and how they travelled on the journey that unfurled for them.
The story of Ruth is one of these- like a burnished miniature, her story sits quietly between the grander, more important stories of Judges and Kings. There would be so many reasons to overlook the story of Ruth- she was a woman, which in the world of the Old Testament would be reason enough. She was a widow, and she had no children, which meant that in the economy of the day she was worth nothing. And she was not even an Israelite- she was from the country of Moab.
And yet her story is written in the pages of God's book. Ruth has a journey to make, and her journey leads her to meet this God. He does not see people as we do- He does not give them value according to their gender, their race or their status. He values each of us as a Father loves His children.
Ruth's journey begins with a choice to travel with her mother in law, Naomi. She says to Naomi, "Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge and your people shall be my people, and your God my God." Ruth 1:16,17
Ruth is not a long book, it only has 4 chapters and so is quick to read. Find time to read it today, and see where Ruth's journey took her.
The story of Ruth is one of these- like a burnished miniature, her story sits quietly between the grander, more important stories of Judges and Kings. There would be so many reasons to overlook the story of Ruth- she was a woman, which in the world of the Old Testament would be reason enough. She was a widow, and she had no children, which meant that in the economy of the day she was worth nothing. And she was not even an Israelite- she was from the country of Moab.
And yet her story is written in the pages of God's book. Ruth has a journey to make, and her journey leads her to meet this God. He does not see people as we do- He does not give them value according to their gender, their race or their status. He values each of us as a Father loves His children.
Ruth's journey begins with a choice to travel with her mother in law, Naomi. She says to Naomi, "Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge and your people shall be my people, and your God my God." Ruth 1:16,17
Ruth is not a long book, it only has 4 chapters and so is quick to read. Find time to read it today, and see where Ruth's journey took her.
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