“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ…Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed BY RUTH, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king…” (Matt. 1:1, 5) Ruth, the grandmother of David, was a gentile, a Moabite, how did she end up in the linage of Christ? Ruth was married to Mahlon the son of Naomi. He died and Ruth did not want to leave Naomi and she said, “wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And YOUR GOD, MY GOD.” (Ruth 1:16) Because of her loyalty and her COMMITMENT to God, He honored her dedication.
One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go out into the harvest fields to pick up the stalks of grain left behind by anyone who is kind enough to let me do it.” Naomi replied, “All right, my daughter, go ahead.” So Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters. And AS IT HAPPENED, she found herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz, the relative of her father-in-law, Elimelech.” (Ruth 2:2-3) OK, we know things don’t just happen. In a few days Boaz would marry Ruth.
Let’s take a moment and consider something very significant about our lives, David said, “I will praise You, for I am FEARFULLY (yârê’: to stand in awe of) AND WONDERFULLY (pâlâh: to be distinguished) MADE; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.” (Psa. 139:14) We are, each one of us, awesomely created for a special purpose, “You saw me before I was born. EVERY DAY OF MY LIFE WAS RECORDED IN YOUR BOOK. EVERY MOMENT was laid out before a single day had passed.” (Psa. 139:16)
Can we do what we want or do we have to do what God has planned? “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “IF THE LORD WILLS, we will live and also do this or that.” (James 4:13-15)
IT WOULD BE VERY WISE FOR US TO ASK THE LORD TO REVEAL HIS WILL FOR OUR LIVES AND PRAY FOR WISDOM TO DO WHAT HE WILLS…
-Bill Stockham