Whither thou goest...

Our Daily Bread
One of the most misunderstood or misused scriptures I know of is the speech by Ruth that says "Whither thou goest, I will go..." Ruth is not saying it to her eventual husband.  She is saying it to her mother-in-law!  How many mother-in-laws do you think hear something like that today!  ha!

This is another Old Testament example of how God lead the least of these into a place of love and security.  Widows had a very, very low place in society back then (sort of like now...).  They were left to fend for themselves, especially if they had no sons.  The story of Ruth and Naomi was one of two widows.  They left the land of their husbands to return to Naomi's homeland.  God opened up the opportunity for Ruth to meet and eventually marry Boaz.  Wow!

Here is the tag line from the devotional:
Fear hinders faith, but trust kindles confidence.

Lord, thank you for having a wonderful plan for your children.  Please help us have trust and confidence in your promises!

Teaching Tuesday
I studied the second half of the Abraham and Sarah story this week.  Like I mentioned last week, this is my favorite Old Testament story.  I have learned so much about God's interaction with humans and about God's promises from these stories.  The second half included the story of how Abraham took his promise, his only son, to the altar, seemingly to sacrifice him to God.  Since I am not a parent, I can only imagine the emotions going through the mind and heart of Abraham.  To give you some historical context, child sacrifice was not unusual in some of the other "religions" of that time.  Since Abraham was just getting to know his God, the only thing he had to believe in was the promises that God gave him -- that his seed would be numbered like the sand.  What faithful obedience!  As we all know, a ram was provided at the last possible second as a substitute for the sacrifice.  What an amazing story to the glory of God!

BONUS: Did you notice the scripture that I posted yesterday?  Jesus repeats the theme of the Bible:
Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” John 11:40

Lord, help me believe.  Forgive my unbelief!

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Am I proof
That You are who you say You are
That grace can really change a heart
Do I live like Your love is true

People pass
And even if they don't know my name
Is there evidence that I've been changed
When they see me, do they see You

I want to live like that
And give it all I have
So that everything I say and do
Points to You
excerpt from Live Like That by the Sidewalk Prophets