By David ReayThursday 13 Feb 2014LifeWords DevotionalsFaithReading Time: 0 minutes
Transcript:
Read Ruth 2:1-3
1 Now there was a wealthy and influential man in Bethlehem named Boaz,who was a relative of Naomi’s husband,Elimelech.
2 One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi,”Let me go out into the harvest fields to pick up the stalks of grain left behind by anyone who is kind enough to let me do it.”
Naomi replied,”All right,my daughter,go ahead.” 3 So Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters. And as it happened,she found herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz,the relative of her father-in-law,Elimelech. (NLT)
Life is full of apparently chance encounters. So is the Bible. This is one of them. Ruth,in dire straits with her mother in law,goes to help with the barley harvest near Bethlehem. Money and food are scarce,prospects are bleak. As our text records,she happened to find herself in a field belonging to a relative,Boaz. Later we read of Boaz and Ruth marrying. And much later again,the Saviour of the world is born out of this same earthly family.
It just shows us what can happen through seemingly chance encounters. If we follow Jesus the notion of ‘chance’ doesn’t come into it. We are to be alive each and every day to the possibilities of encounters which may change us or change the one we meet. Human lives intersect at critical points. Words are exchanged,opinions and counsel shared,promises made. And life changes somehow.
True,not every meeting with others is so charged with meaning. But each has the potential to be more than just a casual encounter. In the providence of God,the casual can become significant. So be open to such possibilities,and watch and wonder at how lives can change as a result.
Each day,God will have arranged divine appointments. Keep them.
Blessings
David Reay