Saturday, November 4, 2017

God Notices Your Hard Work

"I have heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers. May the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully." Ruth 2:11b & 12 (NLT)


Last spring the school district I worked in laid off or transferred many employees. Toward the end of the school year, I was told I was one of the teachers transferring schools. Although I knew a job cut or a transfer was a possibility, I was still shocked when I found out I was among the transfers.

I told myself to focus on the positives. I still had a job. My family was healthy. God can use all things for good. But honestly, inside, all I could think was how this situation just stunk! I was working really hard where I was. I was putting a lot of thought into my work. Didn't anyone notice? Didn't this hard work have any pay off?

In the book of Ruth, Ruth shows great faithfulness to her mother-in-law Naomi by traveling with her back to Bethlehem. But she doesn't stop there. Ruth then takes it upon herself to do the hard work of gathering grain in the fields for herself and aging Naomi.

Ruth begins to harvest in a field belonging to kindly Boaz. On her first day of harvesting, Boaz just happens to show up to oversee his fields. Boaz takes notice of Ruth and graciously tells her she can stay with his harvesters and gather their grain, drink their water and not be bothered.

Ruth, overcome by his kindness, asks why he is being so good to her. Our key verse is his reply, "I have heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers. May the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully." Ruth 2:11b & 12

Boaz heard of Ruth's faithfulness to her mother-in-law. He noticed her hard work in his fields. He rewarded her with kindness and eventually marriage and a beautiful baby boy, Obed.

But not just Boaz noticed Ruth's faithfulness and hard work. God noticed. And God not only blessed her with the earthly rewards, He rewarded her fully with an ancestry line so rich with descendants our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ would be born through it. Praise God!            

We all know what it's like to feel our hard work goes unnoticed, whether it be at a job, home or church. The desire for earthly recognition and rewards can be strong and has the potential to overtake our thoughts and attitudes.

Let's do our best to remain faithful like Ruth, to take refuge under the wings of our God despite our circumstances. He who shelters you and keeps care over you will notice. And the Lord who notices will never fail to fully reward.

Lord, I do my best to work hard at my job, at home and at church. Thanks for noticing. Please help me to do this work for you and not for earthly recognition. Help me to remain faithful like Ruth in all things. Amen.

This post is also featured on the Getting Real Ministries blog.



Friday, August 18, 2017

A Prayer to Give Us Courage


If you are here from Getting Real Ministries, here is a small prayer for you as you grow in study of God's Word. (If you want to see the article that prompted this prayer, head over to the GRM blog).



Heavenly Father,

Your Word, the Bible, is alive and active, mysterious and holy, and sometimes intimidating and scary. But we don't want to be afraid. We want to be courageous. 

Grant us, Lord, that we may become women who learn to love the Bible. 

May we become women who learn to study your Word. Show us how to turn a study of your Word into an adventure. Direct us to a book, a chapter or a verse where we should stay awhile. Prompt us forward when it's time to move on. And veer us off course when we need a different path.

Lead us and teach us, Lord.

Amen



Here are a few verses to help you understand what God has to say about His holy book:

Hebrews 4:12 - For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Psalm 119:105 - Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

Isaiah 40:8 - The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.


Psalm 18:30 - As for God, His way is perfect: The Lord's word is flawless; He shields all who take refuge in Him.
 
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