Unlikely ... lessons from Ruth & Naomi

The story of Naomi and Ruth is an amazing one!  Every time I read it, I am blown away by how big God is, how involved He is in details, and mostly, how loving and kind He is toward those who are after His heart.  Here's the intro to a Bible study that I wrote that expresses my heart ... sorry guys, this study is not directed at you :)

What does it mean to be a godly woman?

We are women and we are unique.  We are not like men, and they are not like us.  I know this sounds kind of elementary, but we live in a world that seems to be getting it a little mixed up.  To be ‘godly’ seems to have little to do with our past.  If it does, I for one failed the test several years ago; in fact I probably failed it the moment I began my journey as a Christian!  Godliness has nothing to do with successes and failures, but everything to do with my present posture & state of mind before God.  I guess another way of putting it is; a godly past does not justify or acquit an ungodly present.

As I was pondering the question of being a godly woman, I was drawn to the book of Ruth.  As I read and reread the book, I was impressed with the many things that we could learn from the lives involved.  I was stunned by the significance of Ruth’s choices, especially as I reflected on the genealogy listed in chapter 4 (Ruth 4:13-22).  It was then that I saw the women specifically that were used to fulfill the coming of Jesus; unlikely candidates for a King’s lineage!  In Matthew 1:1-16; there’s another genealogy account listed for us that takes the one from Ruth all the way to Jesus’ birth.  Christ’s lineage includes woman like Tamar (she slept with her father-in-law), Rahab (a harlot & Canaanite), Ruth (a Moabite), and Mary (unwed & young).  God takes great delight in using unlikely people for His glory.

The very nature of ‘being’ a Christian is to be constantly growing and learning, ever changing as Christ increases in us and we recognize our intense need of Him.  That is my life-long endeavour; to always be teachable, pursuing the heart of God and bringing Him glory with my life.  The more I mature, the more I realize that I am like most of those that God used in scripture; unlikely candidates to be used effectively for a King.  But, this is mere human reasoning as God takes great delight in taking foolish things, weak vessels, and broken lives to exhibit His salvation.

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"Take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. I don't see many of "the brightest and the best" among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families. Isn't it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these "nobodies" to expose the hollow pretensions of the "somebodies"? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ. That's why we have the saying, "If you're going to blow a horn, blow a trumpet for God.""

 (1 Corinthians 1:26-31 MSG)

See the rest of 'Unlikely' here