Ponderings...

I was reading today about Ruth...
The part of her story where she gleans in Boaz's field and then lies down at his feet at harvest to ask him to be her kinsman redeemer.
From there I went to Joshua, to read Rahab's story because she was Boaz's mother. Did Boaz love Ruth because she was a foreigner like his mother, whose faith played a huge part in her life? Do men marry women like their mothers, the same as daughters supposedly marry men like their fathers?

One of my favorite books I have read over the years was Francine River's Lineage of Grace. .She writes about five unlikely women who were chosen by God to be in lineage of Christ. Two of them include Rahab and Ruth. Both foreigners in the land of Israel, one a harlot. What an awesome testimony of God's grace, love, forgiveness and mercy. He can use any of us, if we are repentant of our sins and willing to surrender our all to Him.

Moving along on my rabbit trail, from Joshua I went to Judges, just to put some perspective in the timeline of Ruth's story, which apparently occurred in that general era. I didn't get into the specifics as far as years, etc...

But what really caught my eye and my attention here was the introduction to the book of Judges in my Bible.

The book of Judges stands in stark contrast to Joshua. In Joshua, an obedient people conquered the land through trust in the power of God. In Judges, however, a disobedient and idolatrous people are defeated time and time again because of their rebellion... Judges shows how Israel had set aside God's law and in its place substituted 'that which was right in his own eyes'. (21:25)  The recurring result of abandonment from God's law is corruption from within and oppression from without.

It came to mind, how much this sounds like our nation today - founded on God's principles, but now doing that which is right in their own eyes. Yesterday in my inbox, there was a blog post by MaryLu Tyndall, an author I read on Who Is  Really Going to Make America Great Again, in which she reminds us that as God's people, it is our responsibility to share the Gospel and shine His light; not to expect greatness or change to come as a result of one election, when the state of our nation begins in the hearts of the people and with their relationship to God. She also boldly mentions the scary stuff like persecution and what it takes for the church to take a stand and be a light in this dark world! As Christians we have a great responsibility. 

My commitment this year is to pray for our president and for our nation, and elected officials, to share Christ with those in my circle of influence, and to remember that in spite of the craziness of the world, God is still on the throne and Jesus will return again! Everything that happens is leading up to this wonderful event. 

 ... greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

I John 4:4