Ruth 1-2
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. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.” Ruth 1:16-17
During the time of the Judges, as the Israelites were doing what they thought was right in their eyes, God reveals the account of Ruth. These verses contain some of the most memorable words of all Scripture. While they are spoken from a daughter-in-law to her mother-in-law, they still inspire commitment. Ruth is not choosing the easy or safe way. She is choosing to leave everything that would ensure safety and security and committing herself to sacrifice for another. She is leaving her family, her home, and her religion. She is committing herself to another home, another family, and another God. Her commitment is amazing—an inspiration. She pleads for Naomi to accept her commitment, she commits to her for life, she puts all her own interests aside, and she calls God as a witness to the promise. Am I ready for this type of commitment in my life? Have I come to a place in my life where I am ready to place the needs of others above my own as God leads me? I pray that I am ready to be used by him for his glory.
Dear Father, that is my prayer. I long to have a total commitment to you and all that you are doing. Shape me and break my selfish heart that focuses on my needs and misses or discounts the needs of others. Amen.