14 March | Youth
«For 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
God’s providences are unequaled. There are no coincidences, everything is providence. For the child of God, nothing is the result of chance. The Eternal One works behind the scenes and will not stop until He fulfills His wishes. Someone said that God’s providences are like Hebrew letters. You can only understand them if you read them backwards.
The story takes place in Bethlehem. There was no king in Israel. Everyone did what they wanted. And a famine led Elimelech’s family to the neighboring country. In a strange land, the meaning of his name was a permanent sermon: “My God is King.” But he leaves the scene in the third verse, as death did not take his plans into account.
The book continues with two women having to make a choice. Orpah decides to return home, and her name disappears from the Bible. Ruth chooses God and places herself in the King’s lineage. The Messiah would come from her. She could never imagine what the future held for her. “Look further, you will be the great-great-grandmother of Jesus, who will be born in Bethlehem. Through you, Israel will receive the Lord.” There was no such hope in her mind. If someone told her that this was her destiny, she would doubt it.
From a human point of view, a story that begins with hunger, death, pain, and tears cannot end well. That is what we think. On the surface, it appears that God has failed, but He can use bad circumstances to bless our lives.
I have found myself looking at difficult situations and questioning God’s care for me. However, I have matured enough to see that the Lord has been faithful to me. I have received a lot from his hands; I do not deserve so much kindness. Every day I understand a little more that the story is not all told. The end-credits have not yet appeared.
Today we know how the story of the book of Ruth ends. The outcome reveals that God is doing a thousand things of which we are unaware. He is at the forefront of everything we do; he is the Lord of our history.
May no difficulty, big or small, determine your tomorrow! Today’s struggles can turn into your greatest blessings.