July 26, 2021 Devotion

posted by Kristen Schrickel | Jul 26, 2021

Monday, July 26

Read

So Ruth gathered barley there all day, and when she beat out the grain that evening, it filled an entire basket. She carried it back into town and showed it to her mother-in-law [Naomi]. Ruth also gave her the roasted grain that was left over from her meal. “Where did you gather all this grain today?” Naomi asked. “Where did you work? May the Lord bless the one who helped you!” So Ruth told her mother-in-law about the man in whose field she had worked. She said, “The man I worked with today is named Boaz.” “May the Lord bless him!” Naomi told her daughter-in-law. “He is showing his kindness to us as well as to your dead husband. That man is one of our closest relatives, one of our family redeemers.”  

Ruth 2:17-20


Reflect

Ruth, a widow and foreigner from Moab, has been shown great mercy in the fields of Boaz, an Israelite.  He’s been faithful to order his workers to do just as the Lord had commanded in Leviticus 19:9 (“leave the remainder from harvest for the poor and foreigner among you”), and it has allowed Ruth and her mother-in-law Naomi (also a widow) to eat and survive!  Naomi and Ruth are incredibly vulnerable in their situation, and Boaz shows mercy - yes, he was a distant relative of Naomi, but he didn’t know that when he showed mercy.  God used Boaz to show grace to the women, and through time, Ruth found continued favor with Boaz, eventually marrying him.  This is noteworthy because their union birthed Obed, the father of Jesse (who was the father of King David).  Ruth was a Gentile sewn into the lineage of Jesus because of Boaz’ faithfulness to God.


Boaz took seriously God’s command to leave parts of the harvest for ones who needed it.  What are actions (commands by God) that you’ve adopted and practiced regularly?

Who are people among you who would benefit from this gracious act?  How might you connect with them?


Pray

God, give us a merciful heart that will overflow into gracious actions. Introduce us to someone in need (and maybe even allow us to hear their story and/or pray for them).