Life Is Dull
Ruth 2:2-3 (NLT)
One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, ‘Let me go out into the harvest fields to pick up the stalks of grain left behind by anyone who is kind enough to let me do it.’ Naomi replied, ‘All right, my daughter, go ahead.’ So Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters. And as it happened, she found herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz, the relative of her father-in-law, Elimelech.
The other day I had a conversation with someone about how I’d recently made the decision to stop washing up with a washing up bowl and instead use the entire sink. I was midway through passionately explaining how this meant that larger pans could fit in the sink more easily when I was struck by just how dull my life is.
The thing is - life is quite dull. Obviously there are exciting moments along the way, but for most of us we live day to day, doing similar things, perhaps not entirely sure how it’s all fitting together or where God is in all of it. What I love about the book of Ruth is that it’s the story of two people going about their day to day lives. They arrive in Bethlehem and Ruth starts working in a field picking barley.
And what happens next isn’t particularly exciting - there’s no big miracle, there’s no dramatic breakthrough. Yet God is so clearly at work.
Ruth and Naomi arrive for harvest which is the perfect time to arrive if you’re looking for work. Ruth ends up working in her relative Boaz’s field where he takes notice of her. Ruth is working every day, and so is God. Day after day Ruth shows up to do the monotonous task of picking barley. And day after day God shows up pouring his kindness, love and sovereign power into the details of Ruth’s life.
Ruth’s story reminds us that God can and will work through our seemingly mundane lives. We might not feel that what we’re doing is particularly exciting or glamorous, but God is still at work. He loves our obedience, he loves that we ‘show up’ and he pours his kindness, love and sovereign power into our everyday lives.
Prayer — God, as I look at my somewhat dull day ahead would you pour in your kindness, love and sovereign power. Help me to show up, to stay obedient and to invite you into all I do today.