There are three things that I have seen or read about from other books about Ruth’s character that I have tried to adapt in my life:
First Her Faith in God-
What made Ruth have the courage to go to Israel, a place she had never been before, and believe that God would watch over her? What enables a person to give up all they know?
When Ruth became a believer in God she learned the first rule of following God was to, “love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.”
Ruth used her heart to love God. She kept her emotions in check…She was not out in the fields telling everybody else how Boaz was showing his kindness to her. She was not getting her emotions tangled up in a relationship that might not last… Boaz points that out in Ruth 3:10, “The LORD bless you, my daughter,” he replied. “This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.”
Just like Ruth we need to keep our Hearts, our emotions in check… We need to protect our hearts
We also need to keep our Soul engaged in love for God- My understand of our soul is the place where we keep the knowledge of our Identity- as Believers our Identity is “that I am loved by God and I love God” Ruth Identity understanding is seen when she talks to Naomi before leaving Moab, in ruth 1:16-17, But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.” Ruth knew she would have nothing by leaving Moab but she knew what God had called her to do… Follow God and stay with Naomi.
How do we love God with our Minds? we need to guard the doorways of our minds- what we think about… Ruth according to the book was not fretting and worrying over the possibility of being provided for. In fact in chapter 3:1 of Ruth, it was Naomi who mentioned finding her someone to look out for her. Ruth 3:1, “One day Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi said to her, “My daughter, I must find a home[a] for you, where you will be well provided for.” It is stated in ruth 3:11 that ruth is a woman of noble character. Character is started with the thoughts that are pondered upon in the mind. ruth must have had a very pure mind. A professor of mine at moody was teaching us to read Ruth in the orginal Hebrew. He made the statement that the word “Noble” which means “honable, or above question” is only used in the bible when talking about Ruth.
Loving God with all our Strength includes- physical strength but also time and money. –Ruth used her physical strength to feed herself and Naomi which honored God. Ruth took the incentive to go get grain for them to eat in Ruth 2:2, And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor.” In Ruth 2:7later on in that chapter it states that she worked hard.
The second thing that I see in Ruth is her servant’s heart
In reading the book I stumble upon Ruth’s servant heart. She works really hard providing for Naomi and herself. In Ruth 2:7, Boaz’s worker is speaking about her the passage states, “She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves behind the harvesters.’ She came into the field and has remained here from morning till now, except for a short rest in the shelter.” Ruth was out in the hot sun kneeling or bending over to gathering grain. It is back breaking work, yet she only took a short rest. Ruth worked so hard she gathered an ephah the first day… which is about 22 liters or 5and a half gallons. In the following verse where it explains that Ruth gathered and ephah it says, “She carried it back to town, and her mother-in-law saw how much she had gathered. Ruth also brought out and gave her what she had left over after she had eaten enough.” The statement she carried it back to town is a big statement, The cities in Israel had the fields outside of the city walls. To get back and forth to the field is a good hike maybe a couple of miles and Bethlehem and the area around it is really hilly and mountainous. Ruth dedicated herself working hard and serving Naomi.
Lastly I have noticed in Ruth that she had a teachable spirit and she listened. The entire last two chapters of the book show the taeachableness of Ruth. It must have been hard to be in the position that Ruth was in, an grown adult who had been married but now found herself in submissive position that required listening to others. She could have not listened but it would have been her down-fall. She trusted Naomi to know when to move and when not to move. It must have seemed very odd what Naomi asked her to do. She most likely had never heard of an idea like that before but Ruth listened.
Not all people allow themselves to be taught. We must be “willing”
In Hebrew the word “listen” means “to do.” There is an understanding that when the command or advice is given that command will be done instantly. I have a very wise Israeli friend who’s native tongue is Hebrew. One day gave me advice on how to handle a negative problem with a brother of mine. I heard what she said, then I stated to her “I heard you.” The advice she gave was great advice but I deiced not to follow it. She however, expect what she suggested to be carried out within the next day. When she came upon the fact that the advice was not followed she was surprised. As I tell this story I remember other times when mentors of mine have given me wise advise such as praying intensely for a couple of weeks and I just don’t want to do that so I don’t or I reason with myself it will take too much time. We should be the women who hear wise words and do it instantly.
Notice how ruth had a trusted adviser in Namoi. Ruth told her what was on her heart, she lived life with Naomi and they learned from each other.
AS a younger person we must be under a mother but as we grow older the relationship between the mother and the daughter changes. My mom and I have a different interaction now then when I was little. She is more of my adviser. No matter how old we get we will always be under some kind of authority. I have always done better in life when I have an older wiser woman praying for me and looking out for me like Naomi was for Ruth. No matter how old we get it is always good to have mentors in life. I have four mentors, not my mom, who pray for me and give me wise counsel. Do you have a mentor? if u don’t I would suggest praying about it and then going and asking that person.
First Her Faith in God-
What made Ruth have the courage to go to Israel, a place she had never been before, and believe that God would watch over her? What enables a person to give up all they know?
When Ruth became a believer in God she learned the first rule of following God was to, “love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.”
Ruth used her heart to love God. She kept her emotions in check…She was not out in the fields telling everybody else how Boaz was showing his kindness to her. She was not getting her emotions tangled up in a relationship that might not last… Boaz points that out in Ruth 3:10, “The LORD bless you, my daughter,” he replied. “This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.”
Just like Ruth we need to keep our Hearts, our emotions in check… We need to protect our hearts
We also need to keep our Soul engaged in love for God- My understand of our soul is the place where we keep the knowledge of our Identity- as Believers our Identity is “that I am loved by God and I love God” Ruth Identity understanding is seen when she talks to Naomi before leaving Moab, in ruth 1:16-17, But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.” Ruth knew she would have nothing by leaving Moab but she knew what God had called her to do… Follow God and stay with Naomi.
How do we love God with our Minds? we need to guard the doorways of our minds- what we think about… Ruth according to the book was not fretting and worrying over the possibility of being provided for. In fact in chapter 3:1 of Ruth, it was Naomi who mentioned finding her someone to look out for her. Ruth 3:1, “One day Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi said to her, “My daughter, I must find a home[a] for you, where you will be well provided for.” It is stated in ruth 3:11 that ruth is a woman of noble character. Character is started with the thoughts that are pondered upon in the mind. ruth must have had a very pure mind. A professor of mine at moody was teaching us to read Ruth in the orginal Hebrew. He made the statement that the word “Noble” which means “honable, or above question” is only used in the bible when talking about Ruth.
Loving God with all our Strength includes- physical strength but also time and money. –Ruth used her physical strength to feed herself and Naomi which honored God. Ruth took the incentive to go get grain for them to eat in Ruth 2:2, And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor.” In Ruth 2:7later on in that chapter it states that she worked hard.
The second thing that I see in Ruth is her servant’s heart
In reading the book I stumble upon Ruth’s servant heart. She works really hard providing for Naomi and herself. In Ruth 2:7, Boaz’s worker is speaking about her the passage states, “She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves behind the harvesters.’ She came into the field and has remained here from morning till now, except for a short rest in the shelter.” Ruth was out in the hot sun kneeling or bending over to gathering grain. It is back breaking work, yet she only took a short rest. Ruth worked so hard she gathered an ephah the first day… which is about 22 liters or 5and a half gallons. In the following verse where it explains that Ruth gathered and ephah it says, “She carried it back to town, and her mother-in-law saw how much she had gathered. Ruth also brought out and gave her what she had left over after she had eaten enough.” The statement she carried it back to town is a big statement, The cities in Israel had the fields outside of the city walls. To get back and forth to the field is a good hike maybe a couple of miles and Bethlehem and the area around it is really hilly and mountainous. Ruth dedicated herself working hard and serving Naomi.
Lastly I have noticed in Ruth that she had a teachable spirit and she listened. The entire last two chapters of the book show the taeachableness of Ruth. It must have been hard to be in the position that Ruth was in, an grown adult who had been married but now found herself in submissive position that required listening to others. She could have not listened but it would have been her down-fall. She trusted Naomi to know when to move and when not to move. It must have seemed very odd what Naomi asked her to do. She most likely had never heard of an idea like that before but Ruth listened.
Not all people allow themselves to be taught. We must be “willing”
In Hebrew the word “listen” means “to do.” There is an understanding that when the command or advice is given that command will be done instantly. I have a very wise Israeli friend who’s native tongue is Hebrew. One day gave me advice on how to handle a negative problem with a brother of mine. I heard what she said, then I stated to her “I heard you.” The advice she gave was great advice but I deiced not to follow it. She however, expect what she suggested to be carried out within the next day. When she came upon the fact that the advice was not followed she was surprised. As I tell this story I remember other times when mentors of mine have given me wise advise such as praying intensely for a couple of weeks and I just don’t want to do that so I don’t or I reason with myself it will take too much time. We should be the women who hear wise words and do it instantly.
Notice how ruth had a trusted adviser in Namoi. Ruth told her what was on her heart, she lived life with Naomi and they learned from each other.
AS a younger person we must be under a mother but as we grow older the relationship between the mother and the daughter changes. My mom and I have a different interaction now then when I was little. She is more of my adviser. No matter how old we get we will always be under some kind of authority. I have always done better in life when I have an older wiser woman praying for me and looking out for me like Naomi was for Ruth. No matter how old we get it is always good to have mentors in life. I have four mentors, not my mom, who pray for me and give me wise counsel. Do you have a mentor? if u don’t I would suggest praying about it and then going and asking that person.
