The LORD repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge.”—Ruth 2:12
I truly cannot imagine the extent of the comfort Boaz’s true and kind prayer brought to Ruth’s heart that day. Ruth was a stranger in a strange land. She was a vulnerable woman who had the responsibility of not only supporting herself but her mother-in-law as well. In Boaz’s kindness to Ruth, I saw Jesus’ kindness to me both now and when I first came to Him. I love the picture Boaz painted of God’s protective care.(of a mother bird sheltering the weak, young and helpless with her wings) It is a picture that NEVER fails to bring me comfort especially when, like Ruth, I am feeling vulnerable and alone or like my world has gone crazy and my life is spinning out of control. It is these verses that remind me of my true habitation. It is ONLY my relationship with my God that can calm my soul.
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me!
For my soul trusts in You;
And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge,
Until these calamities have passed by.—Psalm 57:1
I dwell in the secret place of the Most High Almighty God...a place of private and personal divine protection. I am safe...nothing can threaten or overpower my all powerful, all knowing, all seeing and everywhere present God.
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”
3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler
And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and buckler.—Psalm 91:1-4
Keep me as the apple of Your eye;
Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,—Psalm 17:8
Eternal life is mine also...
I will abide in Your tabernacle forever;
I will trust in the shelter of Your wings.—Psalm 61:4
Sustaining grace available in abundance for my every need...
Because You have been my help,
Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.
My soul follows close behind You;
Your right hand upholds me.—Psalm 63:7-8
Verse 13 of Ruth Chapter 2 says this:
Then she said, “Let me find favor in your sight, my lord; for you have comforted me, and have spoken kindly to your maidservant, though I am not like one of your maidservants.”
Again, the kindness of Boaz to Ruth here is a picture of the lovingkindness of my Jesus to sinners like me. Like Ruth, when I first came to the Lord, God’s comfort and kindness caught me by surprise and very often overwhelmed my heart. I knew I was a sinner deserving of death and yet He blessed my newfound commitment and dependence on Him in so many countless and priceless ways. How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings.
Father...Your lovingkindness is always before my eyes. Today give me eyes to see it, to note it and to praise You for it. Allow each one to fill and overflow my heart with thanksgiving as it did when I first was saved. As you made Boaz an answer to his own prayer for Ruth, use me to answer the prayers of my own heart and those of others. Help me to be kind! Help me to share the love Your Spirit of Grace has poured out in my heart with those around me.
But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,—Titus 3:4-6
And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.—Ephesians 4:32
