Traveling with Ruth: Celebration

    I love the image in chapter 4 of the book of Ruth of the city gate - the gathering place where folks could meet, talk about life, discuss theology, and where justice is administered. The word most commonly used for such spaces today are third places - places that aren't the home and aren't work, but where we can meet and do life together.
    For years, the church was a third place. It seemed like it was more common to have  a church home than not, and we did everything at the church - learned, ate, had fun. That isn't true as much today. The church has spent years and a lot of time and energy, trying to make the church back into a third place, but what if the time has come for us to go out? To go out to the libraries, art studios, and coffee shops that people meet at and make that a place where folks can come to know us, come to hear our story and start to share their story with us? What if the church left the building in order to share the love of Christ? Where could you imagine a new city gate could be for you to share the light of Jesus?

“Traveling with Ruth: Celebration” - Ruth 4: 1-17 Devo

April 30th, 2017

Devotional

“Traveling with Ruth: Celebration” - Ruth 4: 1-17

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “Gone Up to the Gate” - Ruth 4: 1-2

In ancient times, the city gate was one of the most important structures that a city could have. It kept people safe at night, when the gates were closed. It welcomed people in to the city’s limits during the day, when the gate was open. It was a meeting place - where people gathered to talk about everything from the news to the weather and families and everything in between. It was also the place where matters of justice were handled, like what is happening in today’s passage with Boaz.

For years in the past, churches were seen as city gates - a gathering places of sorts. But just as the purpose of actual city gates have shifted, so has the place of the church. Some churches don’t fare this shift  well - insisting that they can recreate society as it once was. Others give up and simply focus on themselves and forget about those outside of their doors. But some churches are going to the new city gates, the new gathering places, and are forming relationships there for the sake of Jesus Christ. 

Where are some of the place in our community where people naturally gather and how can the church have a presence there for the glory of God?

What are some gathering places where you can go and form relationships with people? 

Prayer: Loving God, we thank you for the places where your people gather, but we also thank you that you send us out to the places where those who do not yet know you gather as well. Send us out, in the powerful name of Jesus, to these places to form life-changing relationships with folks, all for the sake of your name. Amen. 

Tuesday: “Redeemer” - Ruth 4: 3-6

Often when we hear the word “Redeemer” in church, we think of Jesus, who gave up his very life so that we could have life anew. However, a kinsman redeemer like that found in this passage in Ruth is a bit different. This is a male relative who had the ability to act on behalf of the family in times of trouble and need. In other words its a relative who offers rescue. 

However, this particular relative, the closest kin of Naomi, wants all of the reward and none of the responsibility of being the redeemer. He wanted the parcel of land, but not to take Ruth as his wife.

While we may not call it redeeming today, we can still offer help in times of trouble. When a neighbor cannot meet an electric bill. Or when a friend needs care after being in a hospital. Part of what we should be about as the body of Christ is offering help in times of trouble and need. Not just when there is a reward for us, but whenever we can reflect the light and purpose of Jesus Christ to serve. 

What are some of the ways that we can serve one another?

Tell of a time when you were on the receiving end of being served. What was that experience like for you?

Prayer:  Lord, we confess that sometimes we want all of the reward and none of the work. We want to be blessed in a mighty way by you, but we don’t want to deal with the messiness of other people’s lives. Forgives us, O Lord, and strengthen us to serve one another as you served. Amen. 

Wednesday: “The Hand Off” - Ruth 4: 7-10

I like to refer to the custom of passing the sandal from one person as another as the hand off. The closest kin to Naomi was essentially handing off to Boaz, both his right to claim the land and his duty as being the kinsman redeemer.  With this exchange, Boaz acquired all that belonged to Elimelech, Chilion and Mahlon, including Ruth. 

All too often we quickly hand off the things that we don’t want any part of. We hand off tasks on our to do lists. Chores. And sometimes even responsibilities. But how many of us, Like Boaz, are willing to have these things handed to us? To take what was actually someone else’s responsibility and fulfill it to the best of our ability? 

Are you someone who is more likely to hand off or accept responsibility? Why?

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for the body of Christ where we can bear each other’s burdens. May we trust one another enough to hand off those things which are not good uses of our gifts from time to time, as well as to accept the responsibilities of others when they are in need. Let us bear one another up, O Lord. Amen. 

Thursday: “Like Rachel and Leah” - Ruth 4:  11-12

All of a sudden, Ruth the Moabite, an outsider, becomes and insider. Though she had been rejected by the closest kinsman, the witnesses proclaim to Boaz that she should be like Rachel and Leah, the wive of Jacob and the mothers of the twelve men who went on to be the twelve tribes of Israel. They wish that she be a woman who builds up the house of Israel.

Sometimes all people need to go from feeling like an outsider to an insider is one person who will befriend them. One person who will go to bat for them, like Boaz did for Ruth. The question is if we are willing to be that type of person. A person who takes risks so that others can belong. 

Tell of a time when someone helped you to belong. What was that experience like for you? 

Prayer: Lord, use us to help others not only feel welcome but to truly belong. Help us to take risks for the sake of others. We pray this in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen. 

Friday: “Obed” - Ruth 4: 13-17

The words of blessing that the witnesses spoke upon Boaz came to pass. He and Ruth were married and bore a son, Obed. Obed. was immediately a blessing to Naomi, who felt like her life had been restored though the gift of her grandson. But Obed also was a blessing to the nations, as he was the grandfather of King David. 

Sometimes when we take a risk, we don’t know how it is going to turn out. There is no way that Boaz could know the multiple blessings of the son he bore with Ruth. And there is no way that Ruth could know that by marrying Boaz she would find herself in the lineage of King David and Jesus. Yet, God can take the step of faith that we take and multiply it beyond our wildest imaginations. 

When have you taken a risk for God that turned out differently then you expected?

Prayer: God of promise, God of blessing, thank you for the story of Ruth. The story of Naomi. The story of Boaz. The story of Obed. Remind us that those things that we do in the power of your name may turn out completely differently then we expected, but may be a mighty blessing to others! Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “Earn. Save. Give. - We Don’t Need More Money” - Proverbs 3: 13-14

Family Activity: What is a servant? What are some ways that we can serve other people?

Traveling with Ruth: New Beginnings

   We tend to tell children to share - to share their toys and share their snacks. But as we get older, we hear less and less about sharing as we move more into a mindset of scarcity - thinking that if we share then we will not have enough left over for ourselves.
    But sharing is exactly what is happening in the 2nd chapter of the book of Ruth - the concept of gleaning or leaving behind for those who don't have another way to provide for themselves. Boaz, however, goes well beyond the basic biblical mandate of gleaning. He tells those harvesting his fields that Ruth cannot only gather what is left over, but she can have a choice of whatever she wants.
    What would gleaning look like in our society? What would it look like to advocate and provide for the widow, the orphan and those new the area? What would it look like to not only to tell our children to share, but to embody this principle as adults? How can we use what we have been blessed with to proclaim the love of the Lord?

“Traveling with Ruth: New Beginnings” - Ruth 2: 1-23 Devo

September 10th, 2017

Devotional

“Traveling with Ruth: New Beginnings” - Ruth 2: 1-23

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “Let me go the Fields and Glean” - Ruth 2: 1-4

Gleaning is hard work. In ancient times, gleaning was the act of going around the outskirts of a field and collecting whatever crop was leftover. This could only be done after the reapers, or those who tend the field, had picked over everything they could sell. What was left over wouldn’t be profitable, it wasn’t the best of the crop, but you could still eat it. Gleaning was a mandate from God in order to provide for the poor and the widow. This law is found both in Leviticus and Deuteronomy and applies to fields and vineyards that are harvested.

However, that did not make it easy work. It was a last resort. It was what you did when there was absolutely no other way for you to get food. It was exactly in that desperate situation that Ruth and Naomi found themselves. 

For years, as a pastor, I have seen people at their most desperate hour of need - when there is no where else to turn to get the items your family needs. While many people talk about systems in place to help the poor being abused, we must look at the larger context - why do people need to glean or go to food pantries or sort through garbage cans for food? Because they are desperate. When we look at Ruth, we see the face of desperation and realize that it looks very similar to ours when tragedy strikes. 

What does modern day gleaning look like today? How can you help people who are desperate for basic necessities? 

Prayer: Loving God, forgive us for the times our hearts become hard and we judge whether people are worthy of the aid that we have to give. Help us to remember that all we have was once yours and that you have entrusted it into our care to reach out to others. Soften our hearts to the needs around us. Amen. 

Tuesday: “To Whom Does this Woman Belong?” - Ruth 2: 4-7

The fact that Ruth is a foreigner is inescapable. Time and time again she is referred to as “Ruth the Moabite” so we, as the readers, don’t forget that she isn’t from around here. When Boaz returned to his fields, one of the first things he asks his workers was to whom Ruth belonged. In other words - he doesn’t recognize her and doesn’t know what she is doing in his fields.

Different communities treat those who aren’t from around here differently. In some areas they are automatically embraced and welcomed as family. For others, you could live in the community for over fifty years and still be considered an outsider simply because you weren’t born there.

For people of faith, we aren’t considered family because of where we were born. Or if this is our home church. Or even if we know anyone when we enter into a church building. We are untied through the cross. We are to treat each other as family, not after they earn that right through years of being present, but because we have the same God as our Heavenly Parent. Christ has opened the door so that all who believe belong. 

Have you ever experienced being an outsider in a community? What was that experience like for you?

What are some practical ways we can welcome people and let them know that they belong when they choose to come to worship?

Prayer:  Lord, we confess that sometimes we judge people not by their hearts but by their outward appearances. We want people to prove that we can trust them long before we make them feel welcome. O Lord, forgive us for our mistrust. Help us see people not as insiders or outsiders, but as brothers and sisters in the faith. Amen. 

Wednesday: “All That You Have Done” - Ruth 2: 8-13

Boaz takes the concept of gleaning and redefines it when he allows Ruth to be watched over by the men who are tending the fields and to be given food and drink while harvesting. These are beautiful and bold gestures of kindness to Ruth.

Ruth was so overtaken by gratitude that she fell down and asked what she had done to deserve such lavish kindness. The response? Boaz knew about how she had been looking after Naomi with love and kindness following the death of the rest of their family. He knew that she choose to leave her own people and come to be in a foreign place and amongst foreign people for Naomi’s sake. 

Our faith is one that is meant to be lived out, not simply spoken about. Our actions and our words both need to reflect the light and love of Jesus Christ. Often people who do not yet know Christ complain that Christian’s words and actions don’t match, which makes it hard for them to understand what the faith is about. Not so for Ruth. Her oath to Naomi was matched by her actions in a way that spoke even to those who did not yet know her. 

What can cause a disconnect between our words and our actions? 

How can we live out our faith? 

Prayer: Lord, we thank you that our faith in you is not just about our head or even our heart, but also our actions. Our deeds overflow as an outpouring of the love we have for you in our hearts. May our words and deeds, help others come to know the love of a Savior. Amen. 

Thursday: “Heaped Up for Her” - Ruth 2:14-16

If what Boaz did for Ruth before was beautiful and bold, what he does next is unheard of. He offers Ruth part of his lunch, heaped grain upon her, and then told her to pick from the standing sheaves. He also ordered his men not to be cross with her and to even leave some of the grain that they pick in piles for her as she comes along after them. 

As a result Ruth has access to far more grain then she would ever be able to get simply from gleaning. Because of Boaz’s kindness that went above and beyond expectation, she is able to provide for herself and Naomi. She is able to live.

Often we forget that there are people behind the acts of charity. There is a family that is going to receive the food that we give to the food pantry. The gifts we give around the holidays will go to children who may not get anything else on that day. Boaz reminds us that we are to go above and beyond because real lives are being effected. 

What steps can you take to remind yourself that a real person or family will be receiving that which you give to missions?

Prayer: Lord, you thank you for the kindness of Boaz that went above and beyond. We thank you for his example to us, calling us to go beyond as well for those who are in need, even if we may never meet them face to face. Prompt us to give our very best, as if we are giving directly to you, Precious Lord. Amen. 

Friday: “It is Better” - Ruth 2: 17-23

Once Ruth had committed to stay with Naomi and take care of her, Naomi reciprocated the kindness by taking care of Ruth as well. Naomi recognized the blessing of Boaz’s kindness to them, but she also knew that there may be danger, even with Boaz’s warning to the men, if she followed the field hands each day. So out of a desire to protect Ruth, even if it meant that they may not have quite as much grain, she told her daughter in law to stick close to the other women gleaning the fields.

Part of what we do in the body of Christ is look out for one another - trying to protect each other as best as we can. Sometimes people will heed what we are prompted to say, as Ruth did with Naomi, and sometimes other choices are made, however, we seek to love each other as God has loved us in all circumstances. Amen. 

What are some ways that we can try to protect one another in love?

Prayer: God, use us in a mighty way, we pray. Use us to bless the lives of our brothers and sisters. Use us to proclaim your Word to the world. Use us as agents of love wherever we may find ourselves. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “Traveling with Ruth: Celebration” - Ruth 4: 1-17

Family Activity: Next time your family takes a trip to a new place, take a moment to notice what things are similar to your home? What things are different? What excites you? What makes you nervous? How may this relate to how Ruth was feeling when she arrived in a new place with Naomi?

Traveling with Ruth: Moving

    In the Untied Methodist Church, ordained elders are itinerant. In other words, we go where the Bishop discerns that our gifts are needed. I've gotten pretty good at moving. At one appointment I found out I was moving and was in my new parsonage three weeks later. Call it a whirlwind for sure.
    But moving with the guarantee of a job is different then being on the move when you don't know what's waiting for you. To move with hopes of just finding food. Or maybe finding a better job. Ruth, and her in-laws before her, show us what courage looks like, as they move to a new place simply on hope.
    There is a lot of trust that goes into a move. Trust when you are on the move. Sometimes the church has become so stationary, wanting people to come to us, that we forget the trust in God alone that is involved with going to other people. May we be a people on the move for the sake of the Gospel message.

Traveling with Ruth: Moving” - Ruth 1: 1-18 Devo

September 3rd, 2017

Devotional

“Traveling with Ruth: Moving” - Ruth 1: 1-18

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “When Judges Ruled” - Ruth 1: 1-2

Let’s set the scene. Ruth takes place in the days when the Judges ruled. The Book of Judges was a crazy time - when the people of Israel would oscillate between requesting that God give them a king so they could be like everyone else and forgetting about God entirely. The people looked around and saw all the other countries surrounding them with King and prophets and rulers with flesh, and they didn’t think their God was quite as good as those other rulers in other Kingdoms. The refrain that echoes throughout the pages is “in those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.” Judges would come and judges would go, but the people escalated in their lawlessness - going from fighting other countries at the beginning of Judges to an all out civil war where the tribes turned on each other in the end. It was not a good time to live.

Yet, it was during the time that the Judges ruled, that Ruth is set. During that time when as if fleeing from God and away from the words of the judges wasn’t enough, a famine hit the land. Its a little hard for us to imagine a famine today, for so many of us have stocked pantries. Even when we have a poor crop one summer or even two in our gardens, we have a grocery store down the street and other options. But there weren’t any other options during this time. There aren’t any other options when famine hits even in many lands today. When famine comes people have to move - to try to find fertile land. To try to find a relative with some food to spare. To simply survive. And move is exactly what Elimelek, Naomi, and their two sons did. They moved from a place of safety where al their family lived, Bethlehem, to a place they didn’t know, Moab.

Tell of a time in your life when you had to move into the unknown. What was that experience like? What did you learn?

Tell of a time when you simply did what you wanted, without regard for others, as in the times of Judges. What happened? 

Prayer: Loving God, we confess that sometimes we simply do what we want. We don’t think of other people and we don’t regard you as Creator and King. Forgive us, O Lord. Replace our selfishness with courage and our apathy with hearts that break for the world. Amen. 

Tuesday: “Widows” - Ruth 1: 3-5

We don’t know how long, but after they arrived in Moab Elimelek died. Surely his family mourned him, but death was also part of life during ancient times. If men lived to be forty, it was considered to be good. I know we read lineages of people in the Hebrew scriptures with old-ages, well past what we expect to live today, listed. But those were abnormalities - not the norm. Death was so common that there was a common way that inheritances were passed down in families, so that widows knew they could be provided for. Property passed from one male to the next, generation after generation. While females didn’t inherit property, it was expected that they would be taken care of by their family, after the passing of their husband.

The true problem for Naomi erupted when her sons died ten years later. Both had taken wives of local women, Orpah and Ruth. When they died there was no longer anyone to take care of Naomi. No income to be had. No property to pass down. No way of surviving. The only glimmer of hope Naomi had came in the news that things were no longer so hard in Bethlehem, the bread-basket. She would return to the land of grain and hope that some distant kinsman would take pity on her - bring her into their home and take care of her until she, too, could pass away.

What emotions and thoughts do you think Naomi experienced at the death of her husband and sons?

How can we provide for our widows and widowers as a church today?

Prayer:  Lord, sometimes all we can find ourselves asking is “why?” Why something took place. Why we lost loved ones to death. Lord, be our hope and constant presence in the midst of the “whys”. Amen.

Wednesday: “The Empty Tomb” - Ruth 1: 6-11

Naomi packed her few belongings and provisions for the journey and turned to her now widowed daughter-in-laws, telling them to return to their mother’s households. Return to the place where hopefully someone would have pity on them and take care of them as well. Maybe, just maybe, they could find someone else to marry. But the girls wouldn’t have it. They clung to Naomi, weeping, telling her that they would go with her. Namoi replied even more boldly for them to go back. Go back to the places they knew, surrounded by family, and begin to hope and heal. For she had nothing left to offer them. 

Orpah did as she was told, kissing her mother in law one more time and turning back to her mother’s house. But Ruth, always the bold one, replied that she absolutely would not leave Naomi. She would leave her hometown, where people knew her and where she had prospects of a new life, and would go with Naomi into the unknown -  a place she had never been, with a people who spoke a different language and worshiped a different God. She would go as an outsider for the sake of Naomi.

Do you think you would have responded to Naomi’s request as Orpah or Ruth did? Why?

What does Ruth’s reply say about her character?

Prayer: Lord, help us to be a people of discernment. Give us the wisdom to know when to turn back and when to press on. Guide us on the path that gives you glory. Amen. 

Thursday: “Where You Go” - Ruth 1: 12-17

Naomi gave one more plea - telling Ruth to go as her sister in law, Orpah did, listening to the old women’s wishes to go back. Go back to opportunity and people to take care of her. Go back tot he land she knew. But Ruth would have none of that and replied with a statement that is often used at wedding ceremonies today: Where you go, I’ll go. Where you stay, I’ll stay. Your people will be my people and your God will be my God. Ruth was truly going to be a stranger in a strange land. Leaving her people for her mother-in-laws. 

One of my favorite aspects to the story of Ruth is the fierce since of identity and inclusivity. Ruth probably had heard her husband and father in law pray to the God of Israel, but they also would have known that it was not her God - the God of Moab. But that did not discount Ruth from being part of God’s plans for God is the God of fierce inclusivity, using the most unexpected people, including people who do not yet recognize his power and might. 

What comes to mind when you read Ruth’s oath to Naomi?

Ruth 1: 15-17 is commonly read at weddings. What does this passage of scripture symbolize about our commitment to one another?

Prayer: Lord, help us to be people who fight for one another not with one another. May we be people who give up what we have all for the sake of others. Use us in a mighty way to spread the Good News through our words and actions. Amen. 

Friday: “Determined” - Ruth 1:18

Something that deeply troubles me in today’s society is our natural instinct to create “in” groups and “out” groups. Think about how we speak - clumping people into groups based on religion, region, race, anything that we can think of to separate us from “them” or “those people”. Ruth reminds us that people cannot be grouped together. Her is a woman who is deep in her own grief over her husband’s death and now is voluntary dislocating herself for the sake of Naomi, yet I fear that all too often today we would just see her as “one of those Moabites” or “those people who don’t worship the God of Israel”. If we met Ruth today, what would our reaction be?

God didn’t discount Ruth because of her religion, race, or region, so we shouldn’t either. God had a plan for Ruth that even Naomi, a devout Jew didn’t realize, as Ruth would go on to be in the lineage of David and Jesus. Let us not be like others in the story of Ruth who tried to pin her into a box by only referring to her as “Ruth the Moabite” - may we instead see her, and others, as the whole people they are - loyal, trustworthy, self-sacrificing, and acting in another’s best interest. May we judge her not by things beyond her control but by the oath she made “to go wherever you will go.” May we see her for who she truly is in the eyes of God.

How would we react to Ruth today? 

Prayer: God, help us to see people with your eyes. Help us to set aside that which blocks us from accepting people as your children. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “Traveling with Ruth: New Beginnings” - Ruth 3: 1-5

Family Activity: What are important things that you look for in a friend? How was Ruth a friend to Naomi?