Humble Gratitude

Ruth 2:10-13

Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground and said to him, "Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?" Boaz replied to her, "All that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me, and how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and came to a people that you did not previously know. May the Lord reward your work and your wages be full from the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge." Then she said, "I have found favor in your sight, my lord, for you have comforted me and indeed have spoken kindly to your maidservant, though, I am not like one of your maidservants."

In this passage, we see Ruth's response to the kindness of Boaz. As we learned yesterday, Boaz has told her to stay in his field. He has promised her that she would be protected and provided for. He has encouraged her to drink from his water jars when she was thirsty. Ruth is overwhelmed by Boaz's care!

I cannot help but make the comparison, is not our Master, Jesus, just as kind and good to each one of us? Boaz will represent a Christlike figure throughout the rest of the book, so, today, let's take these three verses above and claim them personally concerning Christ and His care toward us. Let's ask the Lord to open our eyes to the kindness of His love and then be humbled in gratitude and thanksgiving towards Him.

We can claim, just like Ruth, that:

We too, being "foreigners", have found favor in the sight of our Master. His word teaches us, "But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." (Ephesians 2:13)

And we too, have been offered to "stay in His field" for both protection and provision. The familiar psalm declares, "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies" (Psalm 23:5).

And we too, have been invited to drink water from a well that in our case never runs dry. We hear our Master's invitation, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'" (John 7:37)

May the kindness of our Lord of the Harvest humble us so that we have the same response as Ruth did. She fell on her face in gratitude, overwhelmed by his favor, saying, "Why have you taken notice of me?!". She had done nothing...except enter a field by faith.

Ladies, by faith, let's call out to our God, and by faith let's trust Him today, and by faith let's step into our divinely appointed "fields." Our Master has a multitude of blessings waiting for us to gather.

For further reading: Psalm 17:7-8; Psalm 36:5-9; Psalm 63:7-8

Dear Lord,

How can we thank You for Your undeserved kindness? You have saved us by grace, and then poured out Your blessings on us without measure. We, like Ruth, are overwhelmed by Your generosity. Thank You for holding us underneath the shadow of Your wings. In Jesus' Name. Amen.