I recently had a baby. (Recently as in 6 weeks ago!) I came home from the hospital with my two day old baby only to find my entire family sick. I was anxious, exhausted and stressed. Fast forward to today.
Today I read the story of Ruth. She was widowed at a young age with no children to show for it. She lost not only her comfort and security for the time being, but all hope for the future. Life sucked, but Ruth was not selfish. In the midst of difficulty she looked beyond her own pain and decided to comfort her mother-in-law. She was truly selfless.
Ruth and her mother-in-law move to Bethlehem and just so "happen" to come upon the field of Boaz. Unaware of this, Ruth decides to glean from this field and gains favor from Boaz. Ruth's reputation precedes her. Becuase of this Boaz took her as his wife and she had a son name Obed. Through Boaz, Ruth also became a part of the lineage of Jesus.
Ruth's life was a chaotic mess. She had every right to be angry, bitter, and depressed but she wasn't. I look back on this last month and realize that I missed it. I missed the opportunity to look beyond my difficulty and bless the people in my life. Instead, in the middle of my exhaustion, I succumbed to fear. I wallowed in self pity. I was angry.
I look back and wish I had snuggled my kiddos more when they were sick. I wish I had thanked my mother-in-law more who sacrificed her time to take care of us. I wish I had been more encouraging to my husband who was trying to serve us and the church. Hindsight is always 20/20.
The Lord blessed Ruth beyond her wildest imagination. I love seeing how God can't help but pour his love out on her! I wonder how much I miss out on because I am too focused on manipulating my circumstances to create my own version of happiness. I wonder what will happen if I start trusting his plan even when it doesn't feel good.
I want to have eyes like Ruth. I want my faith look beyond my circumstances. I want to trust him more. I want to be selfless in midst of it all.
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