What if the insignificant details of your life are part of God’s master plan for something EXTRAORDINARY? I don’t feel like we think of our lives like that. We are doing the best we can and maybe trying to do better than the day before, but sometimes it is hard to believe that there is some magnificent plan that involves our existence. We hope and pray that our legacy lives beyond our years and that we have been a biblical and positive influence on those around us. Sometimes we feel defeated in that quest and other days it is easier to believe we really did make a lasting contribution to the world.

I was listening to Ben Courson from Hope Generation preach and he was talking about why the Book of Ruth is in the Bible. (Click here to listen to the full sermon.) He said he never understood why this book was even in the Bible. Honestly the question had never occurred to me, but after review I guess there really isn’t much purpose for its existence until he explained the lineage of Jesus. Through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (renamed Israel) the Israelites were formed. Through Lot the Moabites were formed. Even though Abraham and Lot had originated from the same tribe; they parted ways to find more land for their families and within several generations their offspring were bitter enemies. Until Ruth. Ruth was a Moabite and after the men in their family died, she followed Naomi (her mother-in-law) back to Naomi’s homeland.

Ruth 1:16-18 Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. ¹⁷ Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.” ¹⁸ When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped urging her.

This is where Ruth met and married Boaz, an Israelite. Through Ruth and Boaz, Obed was born. Jessie was born to Obed. David was born to Jessie. King David brought the Israelites and Moabites tribes together just in time to unite the tribe through David through which Jesus would be born in order to unite the nations, every tribe and tongue. Ruth coming to Judah reunited the nations!!! All the difficult times that had transpired for this family brought the tribes back together!

So you either found that fascinating or you are snoring, either way stick with me here….

So do you think Ruth after losing her husband and leaving her culture to follow Naomi was in ANY WAY thinking that she was headed into a story that would include her being part of the lineage of the Messiah? I can guarantee you that the answer is an absolute, emphatic NO! Not a chance in the world. She was just trying to SURVIVE and find any kind of provisions for herself and Naomi. My point is this… in the moment, we have NO idea what God is doing through our circumstances. Honestly, Ruth never knew WHILE SHE WAS ALIVE that she was part of the lineage of the Messiah. How frustrating is that to be part of God’s divine plan and NEVER have knowledge of it? That is tough to think about, but maybe one more reason the Bible tells us…

Proverbs 3:5 Lean not on your own understanding

Because we don’t NEED to understand. We NEED to have faith, that God is in control regardless of what our circumstances look like. Honestly, I believe that EVERY last one of us was created for his divine plan.

I love to know what the plan is, execute it and have a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day. There isn’t anything really wrong with this, until it comes to having peace that God has it all worked out and I may never know what “the plan” is. I think it is an important lesson that we simply trust God. PERIOD. I think we often struggle with yearning for just a glimpse of what the big picture of our life is, but I believe God isn’t calling us to make that a priority. He is giving us exercise after exercise to trust him fully without ANY understanding of the master plan that is invovled. That is a bitter pill to swallow, but if we trust that our God is the Creator of the Universe in ALL its glory and wonder…I think we can rest easy that we are in good hands. Hopefully, this story and so many others in the Bible will help us remember that we can let go of those fears and anxieties and find peace that we have a loving Father that has it all under control and is doing things through our life that we may NEVER fully understand. The master plan IS faith in God, not in our own knowledge and understanding. 

Ruth 2:11-12 Boaz replied, “I’ve been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband—how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. ¹² May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”