“Now Naomi had a relative of her husband, a man of great wealth and influence, from the family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one [of the reapers] in whose sight I may find favor.” Naomi said to her, “Go, my daughter.” So Ruth went and picked up the leftover grain in a field after the reapers; and she happened to stop at the plot of land belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech. It was then that Boaz came back from Bethlehem and said to the reapers, “The LORD be with you!” And they answered him, “The LORD bless you!” Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?” The servant in charge of the reapers answered, “She is the young Moabite woman who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. And she said, ‘Please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ So she came and has continued [gathering grain] from early morning until now, except when she sat [resting] for a little while in the [field] house.” Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen carefully, my daughter. Do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but stay here close by my maids. Watch which field they reap, and follow behind them. I have commanded the servants not to touch you. And when you are thirsty, go to the [water] jars and drink from what the servants draw.” Then she kneeled face downward, bowing to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your eyes that you should notice me, when I am a foreigner?” Boaz answered her, “I have been made fully aware of everything that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people that you did not know before. May the LORD repay you for your kindness, and may your reward be full from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”
Ruth 2:1-12 AMP
Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Jeremiah 1:5 if you only knew and understood the profound value and significance of your life, you’d never waste another minute complaining or comparing yourself to others.
Think about those words for a minute. Before “I” formed you. Not sperm and egg. Before God formed you, He knew you and made plans for you. Naomi had no idea that her family’s move to Moab was intricately linked to Ruth’s destiny. If we would follow God’s plan without complaining, we’d discover that within the twists and turns is a beautiful story waiting to be written. Naomi told her town’s people to call her Mara, meaning bitterness, because of the devastating loss she had suffered in Moab. In her complaining she lost sight of the enormous blessing she had returned home with. A widow with no sons to care for her, would’ve been a very difficult life to say the least. But thanks to the God who sees, she was about to be supernaturally blessed.
The Book is named Ruth. Written about a most unlikely person to be in the lineage of Jesus. She was a Moabite- they were idol worshippers. But something happened during the years Ruth was married to Naomi’s son. She must’ve seen and heard something that demonstrated the difference between the gods she worshipped and the True and Living God. She didn’t want to go back to the familiar, so she risked everything, but what she didn’t know was that the risk was her destiny. God doesn’t always tell us the whole story, but if we’ll follow Him, we’ll walk into His plans for us.
Ruth’s plea to Naomi has touched every heart that has read it. Let’s read what led her to walk into God’s favor.
“But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or to turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people will be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD do the same to me [as He has done to you], and more also, if anything but death separates me from you.” When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she said nothing more.”
Ruth 1:16-18 AMP
Naomi’s other daughter-in-law went back home. Ruth wouldn’t budge. The plan of God was already set from the day God formed her in the womb. I’m trying to encourage you to not throw in the towel! No matter how bleak the situation may seem. Naomi didn’t see how Ruth’s life would benefit her leaving her family to go to a strange country. But there was something or Someone driving Ruth’s passion. The God who sees was moving her toward her destiny, and Naomi’s pleading to go back to a “better” familiar place wasn’t going to be a deterrent. When God has given you a Word, do not allow anyone to discourage or talk you out of it.
There are never coincidences with God, only divine appointments. Ruth goes out to glean, and just happens to glean in the field of Naomi’s husband’s near relative. RIGHT! Boaz just happens to come back on that day and take notice of Ruth among all the other women who were gleaning. RIGHT! God has a right time, right place for all of us. We miss it mostly because of allowing folks to discourage and distract us, or we make hasty decisions, or we can’t see how this or that could be God’s will. In verse two she asked that she would find favor in the field she’d be gleaning in. She was asking for God to lead her to the right place. And did He ever! We don’t need to forge our way when God is leading, He gets us noticed. He makes us stand out. We don’t have to fight and frustrate ourselves. Just rest in the God who sees us.
I’m watching the God who sees my children, promote and give raises to them that they didn’t ask or seek for. I watched as He promoted me into retirement at the age of fifty-four. He saw the years I was taken advantage of and on a Sunday afternoon in April 2011 announced that He was retiring me tomorrow. Lol. The God who sees me sees you! Let Him move your life in the direction He planned for you, when He formed you in the womb. Stop striving and start believing. Well meaning people will take you off course, because they don’t understand what God is beating in your heart. Naomi didn’t understand what God was doing in Ruth. Naomi’s destiny was tied to Ruth’s. Ruth’s was tied to Naomi’s. God brings people to our lives that seem odd at times, but when we’re willing to follow His plan, we find that He ordained it before the foundation of the earth. Ask me how I know?
Ruth is only one such story. There are many others. David, Hannah, Moses, Mary, Elizabeth. God saw them when no one else did. He saw them when they were given up on. David was so despised by family members who thought his only job was watching sheep. But the God who sees had a greater assignment. Hannah thought she’d never have kids and was taunted by her husband’s other childbearing wife. But the God who sees had a Samuel in her barren womb before she ever prayed. Jochebed, Moses’ mother, had two other children, yet she saw something in this child worth preserving. Destiny was tied to Moses, deliverance for God’s people was tied to Moses, his mother may not have been able to explain it but Moses was born at specifically the right time, and placed in the river just at the right time. Our individual destinies are pre-planned by the One who formed us. This is why abortion is of the devil. You as a woman, have no idea who you are carrying.
Mary the mother of Jesus. Of all the Mary’s in her town, why that Mary? We are predestined for a specific purpose. He who formed also sees. He knows who’s willing and who’s not. He knows those who will fail and who’ll succeed. He knows it all. He knows who will serve Him and who’ll reject Him. Yet, He gives us equal opportunity to succeed at whatever He’s placed in us to accomplish. He gives us the freedom to do life with or without Him. There’s no self made man, just men who’d rather trust in themselves instead of the God who formed and sees. We covered the life of Joseph, another of God’s divine setups. We studied Gideon, a man who thought he and his clan were nobodies. When God sees you, He sees greatness. After all, we’re made in His image. We can’t help but succeed. The only way to failure is the way we choose. We’ll never fail following His plan.
Ruth ended up marrying the man who owned the field she was gleaning in. A pagan woman who discovered her destiny in the God who sees, found her way into the genealogy of Jesus by giving birth to the Davidic lineage. David, with all his failures is the most spoken of and written about kings in the Word of God. The hall of faithers in Hebrews 11, speaks of those who no one saw their greatness, except for the God who sees. He sees you! He has greater purpose for you than you know. All that is required is a diligent pursuit of His ways. He already knows who you are created to be. When He calls say yes! Whatever He’s asked you to give up, it’s worth letting go of. David could’ve remained a shepherd, Ruth, like Orpah could’ve gone back to the familiar, Jochebed could’ve allowed Moses to be murdered, Hannah could’ve remained barren, Mary could’ve said no to Gabriel. But their stories would’ve been different. Trust the God who sees you and knows the plans He has for you. Let Him write your story. Welcome to new beginnings!
Father I praise and trust You, the God who sees me. All the days of my life are written before ever I was born. You were at the beginning forming me and You’re right now shaping the course of my life. Because of the finished work of Jesus I’m confident that as I walk by faith, trusting You, my future is bright. It doesn’t matter if I’m coming in from behind, Your plans for me has no expiration date. The names I’ve mentioned from the Word sometimes waited years to walk into the destinies you had for them. I’m confident therefore, that You who began this good work in me will see it to completion. In Jesus Name. Amen
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you [and approved of you as My chosen instrument], And before you were born I consecrated you [to Myself as My own]; I have appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
Jeremiah 1:5 AMP
Written by permission of the Holy Spirit
W. Tennant