The Role of Humility
In my life, I find myself constantly fighting the urge to progress or to climb the ladder. Whether it’s in my hobbies, in my work, or even in my family, I look for the next step for me to advance, to be a better Dad, husband, or employee. I’m continually fighting off the urge to strive in life. Ruth’s story is a great reminder that God is always going to take care of me.
What triggers striving in me is the idea that “I can handle it,” otherwise known as pride. Sometimes, I hit these strides where everything is going right and then, all of the sudden, I think to myself, “Hey, things are going pretty good. I’ve got it from here. Thanks, God!” Sounds an awful lot like pride to me. But when tragedy or hardship comes, that thought process isn’t what sustains us.
In the story of Ruth, we see a woman who has endured tragedy, so much so that her status has dramatically declined. She’s forced to flee her home country, has lost all of her family including her husband, and is forced to harvest the scraps that have been left over in the fields. Her status in life has dramatically changed, but we see Ruth take on the humility of a servant for the better of the family that is left. She could’ve left with her sister-in-law to go back to her homeland, but she decided to stay.
Verse 3 of chapter 2 says, “So she went out, entered a field and began to glean behind the harvesters. As it turned out, she was working in a field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelek.”
“As it turned out” is a solid nod to God’s providence in the life of Ruth. From there, Boaz and Ruth meet, and Boaz redeems not only Ruth’s life but also Naomi’s life, and all that came before them. That’s not it though. When Boaz and Ruth marry, they have a child named Obed who is the grandfather of King David, whose lineage leads to Jesus. Let that sink in. Ruth’s humility leads not only to her restoration but to the restoration of all of creation.
When we humble ourselves in life and before the Lord, we are saying that we trust God with where we’re at. Whether that is a mountain or a valley, we trust that God is going to take care of us. When we take on humility, we are taking on the lifestyle of Jesus. We get closer to the heart of God. We are more in tune with His voice and what He wants. We stop striving and instead begin to receive His provision. When I advance in life, it’s not just because I worked hard for it. It’s because God saw fit to trust me with something more. I don’t want to wait until hardship comes for me to start trusting God. I want to be proactive in trusting God so that when the hard stuff does come, I can know, without a doubt, that God has me.
JOURNAL: Pray and ask God to reveal the answers to the following questions. Write down what He shows you and ask Him to work in these areas.
Where are there places in my life where I don’t trust God?
Where do I feel like I’m striving instead of letting God have control?
Is there pride in my life that is getting in the way of my relationship with God?
What triggers striving in me is the idea that “I can handle it,” otherwise known as pride. Sometimes, I hit these strides where everything is going right and then, all of the sudden, I think to myself, “Hey, things are going pretty good. I’ve got it from here. Thanks, God!” Sounds an awful lot like pride to me. But when tragedy or hardship comes, that thought process isn’t what sustains us.
In the story of Ruth, we see a woman who has endured tragedy, so much so that her status has dramatically declined. She’s forced to flee her home country, has lost all of her family including her husband, and is forced to harvest the scraps that have been left over in the fields. Her status in life has dramatically changed, but we see Ruth take on the humility of a servant for the better of the family that is left. She could’ve left with her sister-in-law to go back to her homeland, but she decided to stay.
Verse 3 of chapter 2 says, “So she went out, entered a field and began to glean behind the harvesters. As it turned out, she was working in a field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelek.”
“As it turned out” is a solid nod to God’s providence in the life of Ruth. From there, Boaz and Ruth meet, and Boaz redeems not only Ruth’s life but also Naomi’s life, and all that came before them. That’s not it though. When Boaz and Ruth marry, they have a child named Obed who is the grandfather of King David, whose lineage leads to Jesus. Let that sink in. Ruth’s humility leads not only to her restoration but to the restoration of all of creation.
When we humble ourselves in life and before the Lord, we are saying that we trust God with where we’re at. Whether that is a mountain or a valley, we trust that God is going to take care of us. When we take on humility, we are taking on the lifestyle of Jesus. We get closer to the heart of God. We are more in tune with His voice and what He wants. We stop striving and instead begin to receive His provision. When I advance in life, it’s not just because I worked hard for it. It’s because God saw fit to trust me with something more. I don’t want to wait until hardship comes for me to start trusting God. I want to be proactive in trusting God so that when the hard stuff does come, I can know, without a doubt, that God has me.
JOURNAL: Pray and ask God to reveal the answers to the following questions. Write down what He shows you and ask Him to work in these areas.
Where are there places in my life where I don’t trust God?
Where do I feel like I’m striving instead of letting God have control?
Is there pride in my life that is getting in the way of my relationship with God?
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