Great Expectations
It’s Monday morning. The alarm goes off, and you groan in disgust. You wonder why Mondays are always the hardest. After pushing the snooze button twelve times you throw yourself out of bed, already expecting the day to be slow and agonizing.
Sound familiar? What would happen if Monday mornings weren’t like that? What if we treated every morning as what it is: a gift from God? What do you expect every day when you get up, when you go to work or school, and when you interact with those around you? Do you expect great things, or do you expect the ordinary and mediocre? Do you have faith that even if the day is horrible, God is still good and in control?
The story of Ruth is too often overlooked as carnal or unimportant. But if we take a closer look at Ruth’s life, we see that Ruth was not an average woman. Her mother-in-law, Naomi, was an Israelite widow. Her sons had taken Moabite wives, Orpah and Ruth, but ten years later these women were widowed as well. Naomi began the journey to her home country with Orpah and Ruth, but she reasoned with her daughters-in-law to return to the houses of their mothers and find husbands again. Orpah was convinced to return home, but the Bible says Ruth “clave unto [Naomi].”
“And she said, Behold, they sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law. And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:” – Ruth 1:15-16
The remaining chapters of Ruth show that she was obedient to all of Naomi’s instructions. She went out and worked to provide for Naomi and herself. It would have been easy for Ruth just to go home to her house where she would have been treated well, but she stayed with Naomi. Even in the midst of adversity, Ruth expected great things of the Lord. She had no reason to stay with Naomi after the death of her husband. She had no reason to go to a new land where she would not be honored as a foreigner. Ruth didn’t have much; she could have whined and complained about the responsibility. But she expected great things of God. She continued to press through, to work diligently, and to remain obedient and respectful to Naomi. Webster’s dictionary defines expectant as: “being marked with expectation.” All who saw her knew that she was a “virtuous woman.” Ruth did more than just act the part. She was identified as a virtuous woman.
“And we know that all things work together for the good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose,” – Romans 8:28
Sometimes it is hard to remain optimistic in hard times, or to stand up for yourself when people question your faith. But if you pray for faith, God will not only give you faith, but also the opportunity to exercise it. One way to do that is to expect great things of God. That doesn’t mean that everything will happen the way we think it should; Ruth must have been devastated when she lost her husband, but God had a greater plan. Later in the book, she marries a man named Boaz, a kinsman of Naomi’s family, and eventually carries the line of David and Jesus. If she hadn’t trusted in God, she wouldn’t have married Boaz or been the great-grandmother of King David. If you think about your life, do you waste your energy worrying about things you can’t control, or do you use that effort believing that God can pull through?
God is ready to do great things in all of our lives. Do you believe and expect that He will?
Wow! Great artice. This really stood out to me, “What if we treated every morning as what it is: a gift from God?” it’s a relatively simple truth that if we do not implement it into our lives purposely evades us. It’s always great to be reminded of those simple truths that will enrich our lives.
Great piece. You spoke to where we live. Your advice to believe that God has a greater plan is a key to better living.
I am encourage by all of the wisdom that flows through the young authors on this blog.