love loves

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” I Corinthians 13:4-8

 

Happy Friday!

I trust and pray all is well with you –

And that you are taking time to love – Love God, Love People, Love You

Yesterday we talked about love looks and how love looks with love

With a heart of grace, mercy and compassion

Yet we must understand that love not only looks with love – love loves

Love is not a concept or notion – Love is actively engaged in the process of loving

Loving God, Loving Others, Loving Self

We noted in our post a few days ago that ‘love will make you do some things’

If your love does not prompt you to action – you must question whether it is truly love

When we visited the Book of Ruth, we saw love in action in the lives of each character

The love Ruth had for Naomi moved her to move away from family, friends and country

The love Naomi had for her daughter-in-law prompted her to help her

The feelings Boaz had for Ruth were evidenced by what he was willing to do for her

'God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.’ John 3:16

It was the love of the LORD which inspired the action of giving

‘… Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us …’ Ephesians 5:2

It was the love of Christ that was the catalyst of His sacrifice

Anyone who does not act in love … does not love

‘Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.’ I John 4:8

what is your love saying? what is your love doing?

Is your love moving you to love?

I love you is one of the easiest things to say

I love you is much more difficult, but much more meaningful to show

‘by this will they know you are My disciples – if you have love one for another’ John 13:35

It is by the love we show one another – not the words we say to one another

What you do will often scream so much louder than what you say

Is your love serving as a springboard for acts of love?

If your love is not prompting you to action – you must question whether it is truly love

 

Have a Blessed Day!

 

‘ let everything you do be done in love’

I Corinthians 16:14

love looks

We have made it past the midpoint and we are sliding into the homestretch,

                Looking toward the weekend with loving thoughts of rest

And we are still talking about love

Again – we could look at love every February and never run out of material

Today we will be taking one last glance at the book of Ruth for ... love looks

I could not leave the book of Ruth without talking a bit more about Boaz

He is an interesting gentleman – not everyone’s pick, but interesting

Perhaps he was wealthy but 'not quite wealthy enough'

Perhaps he was not that handsome – there is no way to tell

But we do know he was older than Ruth and that he was still single

I don't know if Boaz was looking for love, waiting for love or if he was perfectly content

It is possible he might have been shunned because his mom was a former prostitute

                People will judge you by your associations and your past all the time

I cannot say with certainty that was the reason he was still single

But I am confident his past played a role in his treatment of Ruth

Boaz noticed something unique about Ruth – 

'All the people of my town know that you are a woman of noble character' Ruth 3:11

He likely saw some of the same qualities that he viewed growing up:

Courage, boldness & zeal – characteristics held by his mom, Rahab

Yes, his mom was Rahab, the famed harlot from the book of Joshua [Joshua 2:1, Mt. 1:5]

She was the Rahab who helped the spies when Israel got ready to lay siege to Jericho

She was a foreigner who helped God’s people and then came to live among them – just like Ruth

 

Your earliest reflections of love often shape your look of love

Yet, it does not matter the reasons which shaped Boaz’s response,

What matters is that he was able to look with love and with a heart of compassion

– on a foreigner in a strange land

He was able to look past her past and the fact that she was a poor widow

He was able to respond with kindness – to the kindness extended to him

‘The LORD bless you [Boaz replied] … this kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor. And now … don’t be afraid. I will do for you all you ask …’ Ruth 3:10-11

Boaz understood ‘love looks with love’

And it is alright  that Boaz might not have been everyone’s favorite

Because all that matters is that he became Ruth’s favorite when he looked on her with love

 

Have a Blessed Day!

‘ Praise be to the God and Father of our LORD Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves received from God.’

II Corinthians 1:3-4

it's not over

Good Afternoon Friends, Family, Foes … Everyone

Yes, I am greeting everyone this afternoon

Remember I said in our post 'choose to love',

‘Not everyone who comes to check on you is checking to see that you are doing well’?

But, if they take the time to check – you should at least be cordial

Why? Because we love all people and we trust the Holy Spirit to move – with all people

Now, that is not directly my topic this morning – but it is still all about love

And this morning, I want us all to understand something: 

No matter what it looks like, no matter how it feels, irrespective of how long the storm has been raging, despite your weariness – it’s not over

 

We have spent a great deal of time talking about Naomi

However, I would like to shift gears and talk about Ruth – the namesake of our Bible book

Now, we already know how Ruth’s story ended

But it would have been really easy, at any point along the way, for her to believe it was over

Therefore, I would like to focus on how Ruth’s story evolved and the role that love played

Ruth faced loss similar to Naomi – they both lost husbands

But where Naomi turned to bitterness – Ruth focused on living in love

She loved Naomi enough to leave parents, friends, country and everything familiar

She loved her future enough to refuse to be stuck in the past

Sounds extreme but, as we’ve noted previously, love will make you do some things

Now, we know from yesterday that Ruth ended up with a new love story

She ends up catching the eye of a local bachelor named Boaz

But what was it that Boaz found attractive about Ruth?

In a culture where widows were seen as misfortuned, what would make him take a chance?

It was her faithful and sacrificing nature … it was her love

“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. May you be richly rewarded by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.” Ruth 2:11-12

Ruth’s name means ‘compassionate friend’ and that is exactly who she was

Her reputation of being a loving friend went before her and spoke on her behalf

Boaz had been told of what a friend she had been to Naomi

It had reached his attention all the things she did in love for her mother-in-law

He had been made aware of her selfless nature

Selflessness is attractive – selflessness not selfishness

And Boaz quickly took notice

You will recall his name means ‘swiftness’,

Emphasizing how quickly a situation can change when you walk in love

Even when you think it is over, the LORD can turn things around with a swiftness

It’s not over

Love will position you to keep believing when it seems all is lost

Love can pave the way for you to begin again

Love refuses to let you stagnate, remaining frozen in the past

Love will propel you forward –

Love lets you know that it’s not over

It creates new beginnings for you – just like it did for Ruth

And aren’t we all glad that she did not stop walking and living in love?

After all, she ended up becoming Jesus’ great-great grandma by over forty generations

So today – whatever you are facing, 'Keep going! It’s not over!'

‘Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, neither has it entered into the mind the things God has prepared for those who love Him.’ I Corinthians 2:9

You never know what God has in store for you …

 Have a Blessed Day!

‘ I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future’

Jeremiah 29:11

not about you

What a lovely morning it is today in Virginia Beach!  

No – not really

It is dark and damp outside … and I believe I actually heard thunder last night

No worries though … we have other things to focus upon

And, what is the topic this morning? Here’s a hint: not you

I am not being mean, honestly I am not

The topic, of course, is LOVE but we will be focusing especially about the fact that

          love ... it is not about you (or me) 

 

Yesterday we spent a great deal of time in the book of Ruth

It is one of the shorter books in the Bible – only four chapters

Yet, it actually focuses on love at several different levels

We will be talking about Ruth tomorrow and today we will be finishing our focus on Naomi

However –

 In order to finish Naomi’s story … I have to give away the ending of Ruth’s story

There has been tremendous loss –

And now these two ladies, linked by tragedy, have journeyed back to Naomi’s home town

Naomi and Ruth have returned but are not in the best position socially or financially

Remember, both are widows returning from a country where they experienced hard times

‘When Naomi heard in Moab that the LORD had come to the aid of His people by providing food for them, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there.’ Ruth 1:6

Three set out but only two returned

And understand, there was nothing for Ruth to gain in returning with and helping Naomi

We shared a few days ago that love is ‘other-focused’

Well that is the exact type of love that Ruth demonstrated

She followed out of loyalty and out of a love that understood – it is not about you

And even when they got back, Ruth’s love was still ‘other-focused’

She decides to go work in the fields in order to get resources for the both of them

And Naomi stops being bitter long enough – to help her

Real love, the type demonstrated by Ruth, it is contagious

And now Naomi is focused on loving others more than being consumed with her pain

Perhaps, in all her grumbling, Naomi finally realized that she was not truly empty-handed

She realized that, even in the times of hurt and loss, God’s blessings are still present

She had a daughter-in-law who loved her enough to leave her parents, friends and country

So now Naomi is caught up in this ‘not just about me’ kind of love

Understanding the people and the customs, Naomi helps Ruth,

She gives her pointers on how to navigate relationships – and boy did it work!

Ruth ends ups catching the eye of a kind (and wealthy) bachelor named Boaz  and both she and Naomi are richly blessed because of it

"So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. [And] When he made love to her, the LORD enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. [Then] The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the LORD, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth. Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him.” Ruth 4:13-16

 When you focus on love – instead of on pain, anger and bitterness,

something wonderful happens …

The LORD will turn your situation around

The LORD cares about what we care about & 

           'He will perfect that which concerns [us]’ Psalm 138:8

You will not have to worry about how to get blessed;

the LORD will cause blessings to chase you down

When you no longer fret and realize that everything is not about you,

God will make it His business to make it all about you

 

Have a Blessed Day!

choose to love

Good Evening –

I pray your Monday went well and that your week is off to a good start

I also hope that your Valentine’s Day was, well, lovely

Me, I thoroughly enjoyed my day

But how many of you know that not every day is Valentine’s Day?

It is easy to love those who love you – and to love life when life is loving you

But what do you do when it seems like everything is going wrong?

You choose to love anyway …

As promised, we will be continuing our focus on love through the remainder of February

And today we will be re-visiting the story of Naomi

We started her story in our post the saddest valentines

And, you will recall that Naomi had been hit hard by some of life’s challenges

She had lost her husband and two sons while living in a foreign land …

So she finds herself returning to her hometown – with one daughter-in-law,

                Ruth, the daughter-in-law who refused to leave her side

Yet, when she reaches her village she tells the ladies:

“Don’t call me Naomi [which means pleasant], she told them. “Call me Mara [which means bitter], because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me?” Ruth 1:20-21

Hurt will hurt you – so much so that it will be all you can see at times

I understand why Naomi felt as she did

She experienced tremendous loss,

And it is likely not all the women who came to greet her were happy to see her

After a long journey, I am certain she was dusty, tired and looking worn out

“… the women exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?” I Ruth 1:19

There is absolutely no way to be certain of their intentions

Some – I am sure – were very happy to see her once again after so many years

However – knowing the nature of people – some likely used it as an opportunity to mock

‘Could this be the same Naomi who left here so blessed and full of hope – returning to the people she left behind, disheveled and alone, without husband, sons or wealth?’

You know how people can be sometimes

Not everyone who comes to check on you is checking to see that you are doing well

But their intentions or perspective didn’t really matter,

Naomi already had enough on her mind all on her own

Her faith was weather-beaten from the storms of life she had experienced and she was feeling bitter

One online source defines bitterness as being angry, hurt, or resentful because of one's bad experiences or a sense of unjust treatment

It is hard enough to go through difficulties – especially if you feel like you deserved better

But we must all understand – no one deserves anything

Further, the rain falls on the just and the unjust

The LORD God Almighty …

‘He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and unrighteous’ Matthew 5:45

This is a first-hand testimony from Jesus

In fact, in the verse immediately preceding that verse He says,

“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” Matthew 5:44

 

God is Love –

The LORD is well able to handle your enemies;

You focus on handling your heart

And this is what the LORD will do – when you choose to love anyway,

‘He will make your enemies your footstool’ Psalm 110:1

‘He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.’

Psalm 37:6

The 2021 Modern Day Translation of Psalm 37:6?

He will give your enemies a front row seat to the blessing show

Now – that is not why we choose to love anyway, but it is one of the side effects

Naomi’s story has a happy ending!

We will talk about it some more tomorrow …

 

Have a Blessed Evening!

‘ Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies … my cup runneth over’

Psalm 23:5