And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one in whose sight I may find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.”
So she departed and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers; and she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.
— Ruth 2:2-3
When we feel that the church life has a shortage, the problem is not with others but with our own lack of labor. We idly wait to be watered, nourished, and refreshed, when we ourselves should be laboring with all those around us in this field. In the field of Boaz, some cut the barley, some bind it into sheaves, some cook and serve the food, and some coordinate and oversee others. Each worker contributes to this beautiful portrayal of the church life. How about you—are you laboring in this field according to your ability and capacity? For whom are you caring?
Ruth was a beginner in the church life, yet from the first day she began to exercise as best she could. She did not know how to cut or bundle as well as others, but she could at least glean. She could supply both Naomi and herself. She was not waiting to be fed; she was working to feed. She needed to be cared for, but she also cared for someone else. She was served by someone, and she herself served. This is the church life.
Adapted from Ruth: Growth Unto Maturity, pages 38.
Tomorrow: “Appreciating the Lord’s Arrangement”