4: the line or course on which something is moving or is aimed to move or along which something is pointing or facing
6 a: a channel or direct course of thought or action b: tendency , trend c: a guiding, governing, or motivating purpose
RUTH 2:17-23
I have been doing inductive Bible studies for three years and it has been a pathway for spiritual growth. I've not only learned a lot about God, but about myself as well. I didn't realize how important words were to me until I started spending a good deal of time studying God's Word.
As a part of inductive Bible study, I usually start pretty early in the week by looking up the Hebrew for the text we are studying and seeing what words stand out to me. For the first time that I can recall, this technique failed me this week.
The passage did contain some interesting words, but for the most part I had explored those words earlier in the book of Ruth. Normally, a good word leads me to other verses with the same word. That obviously didn't work this week, since I didn't have a word to use as my diving board into the passage. After failing to find a good word or a good cross reference, I finally happened upon an expositional sermon that examined the passage verse by verse.
In that sermon, the author pointed out that Ruth abides in Boaz's field for the entire barley harvest. Ruth didn't hop around from field to field looking for the best circumstances. When God led her to a field where the owner protected her, fed her and provided abundantly for her, she stayed put. Now, it may seem obvious that the thing to do when handed all of these blessings is to stay put. But how often in your own life do you receive a blessing, only to look for the next one? How often do you put in a hard day's work and just keep on working without seeking lasting reward? The gleaning Ruth was doing wasn't easy work. She spent all day bending over, picking up grain from the ground and then beating the grain to get the edible portion. She did this because it was the way God provided for her.
My picture to illustrate the lesson I learned from this week's passage was a series of traffic signs: A Yield Sign, A Stop Sign and A Traffic Light. I wrote below each that we are to yield to God's will, stop where he sends us and go full out at the work he places before us. I'm not sure which of these is hardest. Sometimes it feels pretty easy to yield to God's will. I believe I am currently in my job at Rejoice because I followed God's traffic signs to it. That part wasn't really all that hard. I love Rejoice. I believe God is using it to do great things in the lives of the children who dance there, including my own daughters. I believe God has a plan for this ministry and that he wants to see us dance before him with joy as these students do. I have seen that Rejoice is God's ministry, so it was easy to yield to God's direction to work there.
Right now, what's hard is stopping where God has me and staying there. I feel responsible for our budget shortfall. As Development Manager, I believe I should have been able to somehow prevent this. I should have found more time, more energy and better words to solicit funds for us. One of my first reactions upon hearing about our financial situation was that perhaps I should resign. My salary, small though it is, does have an impact on our budget. It might be better for the ministry as a whole if I were to just go to another "field" instead of stopping where God has me and continuing to go full out at my work.
I think this doubt about God's direction for my life stems from a lack of belief on my part. Specifically, a lack of belief that God can and will use me to do his work. I have for so long believed that I am incapable of producing worthy work that when faced with a challenge like this, I instantly begin self-recriminations regarding my worth, my skills and ultimately, my value. Interestingly enough, I've taken some solace and instruction from a song that my daughters danced to at Rejoice this summer. It says in part, "If you are who you say you are, then I am who you say." If I am going to believe that God is who he says he is, then I must also believe that I am who he says I am... and right now that includes Development Manager at Rejoice.
6 a: a channel or direct course of thought or action b: tendency , trend c: a guiding, governing, or motivating purpose
RUTH 2:17-23
I have been doing inductive Bible studies for three years and it has been a pathway for spiritual growth. I've not only learned a lot about God, but about myself as well. I didn't realize how important words were to me until I started spending a good deal of time studying God's Word.
As a part of inductive Bible study, I usually start pretty early in the week by looking up the Hebrew for the text we are studying and seeing what words stand out to me. For the first time that I can recall, this technique failed me this week.
The passage did contain some interesting words, but for the most part I had explored those words earlier in the book of Ruth. Normally, a good word leads me to other verses with the same word. That obviously didn't work this week, since I didn't have a word to use as my diving board into the passage. After failing to find a good word or a good cross reference, I finally happened upon an expositional sermon that examined the passage verse by verse.
In that sermon, the author pointed out that Ruth abides in Boaz's field for the entire barley harvest. Ruth didn't hop around from field to field looking for the best circumstances. When God led her to a field where the owner protected her, fed her and provided abundantly for her, she stayed put. Now, it may seem obvious that the thing to do when handed all of these blessings is to stay put. But how often in your own life do you receive a blessing, only to look for the next one? How often do you put in a hard day's work and just keep on working without seeking lasting reward? The gleaning Ruth was doing wasn't easy work. She spent all day bending over, picking up grain from the ground and then beating the grain to get the edible portion. She did this because it was the way God provided for her.
My picture to illustrate the lesson I learned from this week's passage was a series of traffic signs: A Yield Sign, A Stop Sign and A Traffic Light. I wrote below each that we are to yield to God's will, stop where he sends us and go full out at the work he places before us. I'm not sure which of these is hardest. Sometimes it feels pretty easy to yield to God's will. I believe I am currently in my job at Rejoice because I followed God's traffic signs to it. That part wasn't really all that hard. I love Rejoice. I believe God is using it to do great things in the lives of the children who dance there, including my own daughters. I believe God has a plan for this ministry and that he wants to see us dance before him with joy as these students do. I have seen that Rejoice is God's ministry, so it was easy to yield to God's direction to work there.
Right now, what's hard is stopping where God has me and staying there. I feel responsible for our budget shortfall. As Development Manager, I believe I should have been able to somehow prevent this. I should have found more time, more energy and better words to solicit funds for us. One of my first reactions upon hearing about our financial situation was that perhaps I should resign. My salary, small though it is, does have an impact on our budget. It might be better for the ministry as a whole if I were to just go to another "field" instead of stopping where God has me and continuing to go full out at my work.
I think this doubt about God's direction for my life stems from a lack of belief on my part. Specifically, a lack of belief that God can and will use me to do his work. I have for so long believed that I am incapable of producing worthy work that when faced with a challenge like this, I instantly begin self-recriminations regarding my worth, my skills and ultimately, my value. Interestingly enough, I've taken some solace and instruction from a song that my daughters danced to at Rejoice this summer. It says in part, "If you are who you say you are, then I am who you say." If I am going to believe that God is who he says he is, then I must also believe that I am who he says I am... and right now that includes Development Manager at Rejoice.
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