I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

Ruth 2. “So she fell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, ‘Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?’ And Boaz answered and said to her, ‘It has been fully reported to me, all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know before.  The Lord repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge'” (Verses 10-12).  This is a beautiful portion of scripture. It is the blessing of obedience, and a picture of the blessing that comes from keeping your commitment. Let’s change the characters for a moment, let’s makes Boaz, Jesus. make Naomi, the Holy Spirit, and make Ruth, us (human beings looking for their path). Now let’s go back to the story. The Spirit tells us to go, but we cling. Then we meet Jesus, who blesses us for making a choice to follow His Spirit, letting go of our past. See the correlation? See the picture that is being painted with this story? It is the very same offer Christ makes today. His Spirit gives us the choice to follow Christ or stick with what we know. One path leads us to “emptiness” the other path leads to everlasting life and adventure. However, the “empty” path is lively, bright, filled with color and many follow because from the outside it seems better. While the new life and adventure path is dusty, dirty, and hidden in the bushes, you have to seek it, to find it. Orpah chose the easy path of going back to what she knew, and we never hear of her again. Ruth chose to follow the path “less traveled”, and walked right into a blessing.