Approximately 3,000 years ago, three women stood at a crossroads. Naomi was an Israelite whose husband had died, and now she had no financial support in the land of Moab. She decided to go home to Bethlehem.
Orpah and Ruth, her daughters-in-law, were widows like Naomi, but unlike Naomi they were Moabites. They suspected they would not be welcome in Bethlehem. Heartbroken, Naomi agreed. She begged them to return to their Moabite families. Orpah departed, and we hear no more about her.
But Ruth loved Naomi too deeply to go. In verse 1:16, she said, “Where you go I will go,” and that she will even give up her Moabite roots, “Your people shall be my people.” Most important of all she pledged, “Your God shall be my God.”
In Bethlehem, she married Boaz and had a son. That son became an ancestor to King David and eventually to Jesus Christ. But all that was in the future. All Ruth knew was that a person she loved needed her, and she was going to trust God for whatever came next.
It often happens just this way. You may stand at a crossroads with a decision to make. Where your decision will take you is unknown, but you do know that you are to love others and trust God, the two greatest commandments of Jesus (Matthew 22:38-39). In a world of uncertainty sometimes that’s enough.
God, I ask that you guide my decisions by faith and love. I trust you with my future. May your will be done. Amen.
Go Deeper — Are you facing a decision today? Will you seek God’s guidance, and then courageously follow through in his strength even if you don't know what the future holds?
Read Further — C.S. Lewis said, “We’re not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be.” Read how to faithfully surrender to God’s plans.
Photo Credit: Faical Zaramod