To tarry with Him...

So, it's officially summer in Arizona. Yep, that means we, Arizonans, are currently burning to a crispy nothingness! :-D

In addition, regardless of whether I'm in or out of school, life never seems to slow down. While I may shake my fist in frustration and despair with a cry of "Cruel life!" at my ever-growing to-do list and the fullness of life in general (combined with my already terrible habit of procrastination)...I either have to hop on for the ride or sit back and think that I can actually obtain control over my days. What it really comes down is that I'm very easily stressed and I just need to take a chill pill some days. Unfortunately, on many days, speaking to myself objectively and reasonably does not seem to penetrate my heart. *sigh* And that's why I am ever thankful for my dear Jesus. And He surely never wastes my days of stress. I say that because it always seems like it's in those moments when I'm allowing myself to become unnecessarily burdened with life (whether it be actual painful, grievous things or merely the bustle of day-to-day activities) that He brings to surface unexpected internal struggles within me that I didn't even really know (or acknowledge) were there. I don't know quite how to put it into words. It's breaking, but not crippling. It's painful, but so necessary. It always driven me back to the Cross. Even when I cannot understand why He is doing what He is doing in me, or why I have to learn the same old lessons over and over again or why I'm struggling with something that (from the outside looking in) I think is terribly ridiculous, I remember that there is comfort in His embrace.

"When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. (Psalm 94:19)

I once heard a quote by Timothy Keller in which he said, "Sometimes it feels like God is killing us, when He is actually saving us." While it is true that I am righteous and holy in Christ, it is also true that underneath His cloak of righteousness, I'm a wretch. I'm so unlike Him. I'm so indifferent to my sin. There's so much of me that needs to die. I want so much to be purely devoted to Him and desire Him only, but I despise the sin in me that hinders and suffocates.

Yet, He, ever so gently whispering, "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit." (Zech 4:6).And, like a child, I receive. Again. And Again. I go to the River of Life. I stretch out my "roots" to drink. Lord, not by my might, nor by my power, but by Thy Spirit.

I read this again this past week and found it so filling to my heart.

The strongest, most mature Christians....are the hungriest for God. It might seems that those who eat most would be least hungry. But that's not the way it works with an inexhaustible fountain, an infinite feast, and a glorious Lord.

When you take your stand on the finished work of God in Christ, and begin to drink at the River of Life and eat the Bread of Heaven, and know that you have found the end of all your longings, you only get hungrier for God. The more satisfaction you experience from God, while still in this world, the greater your desire for the next. For, as C.S. Lewis said, "Our best havings are wantings."

The more deeply you walk with Christ, the hungrier you get for Christ...the most homesick you get for heaven...the more you want "all the fullness of God"...the more you want to be done with sin...the more you want the Bridegroom to come again...the more you want the Church revived and purified with the beauty of Jesus...the more you want a great awakening to God's reality in the cities...the more you want to see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ penetrate the darkness of all the unreached peoples of the world...the more you want to see false world views yield to the force of Truth...the more you want to see pain relieved and tears wiped away and death destroyed...the more you long for every wrong to be made right and the justice and grace of God to fill the earth like the waters cover the sea.

If you don't feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great. God did create you for this. There is an appetite for God. And it can be awakened. I invite you to turn from the dulling effects of food and the dangers of idolatry, and to say with a simple fast: "This much, O God, I want You."

~ John Piper, A Hunger for God

And I hear Him say, "Will you tarry with Me?" Why would I ever dare refuse Him? I love Him oh so dearly...but how much more of Him I do need!

And does Thou hear the silence of my heart, Lord;

Canst Thou count the tears that never reach my eyes?

And these yearnings, which will not fit my words, Lord;

Wilt Thou feed this hidden hunger –

Desire, spawned of the Spirit, which somehow fails to rise?

“Yea, Soul, Eternity has tuned my ear to silence,

My own heart brims with tears now long unshed;

The quiet sanctuary of unspoken reverence

Is my dwelling place of old;

And in the deeps of spirit have I made my bed.”

- Jim Elliot

The complexity of our LORD...

It has been quite a week. I truly miss blogging after being away for a week or longer. There is something therapeutic about it. I would not call myself a writer, and yet I enjoy journaling and sharing my heart through the type.

So, the world, as usual, has never ceased to be eventful, while I'm just trying to finish up another semester. I'm not a very politically-involved person. Perhaps, it is one of my great faults. Most times, I choose to be ignorant of what is happening in the world of politics because it frustrates and grieves me. I may be a conservative at heart, but it's not how I define myself or what I'm most passionate to preserve. I have seen the politics of this world eat away at souls and embitter those who are children of God. The fact that more Christians are caught up in politics than the Word of God is a sad reality. While I should be more well informed than I am, I decided awhile ago that I was to only be concerned about ONE thing and that is my LORD, His character, and His living Word. I have only one life to live and I desire to spend it more concerned about His kingdom than this earthly one. He is the one who makes leaders to rise or to fall and none can stay His hand when He purposes to do His will. He works through the prayers of His saints to triumph over evil and bring His glory and kingdom on earth. Thank God for the freedom and rights of this country, but if they were ever taken from us, may it only be so that we might find Christ the highest treasure through the trials and the souls of many be brought to Him. I'm not particularly pro-America and, yet, in another sense, I am. But that's a topic for another day.

In the many events that occurred this past week, there was one that got me thinking - the death of Osama Bin Laden. It seems pretty shrouded in mystery, as usual. Whether Osama died years ago, died this past week, or this is just some huge conspiracy, I don't care enough to discuss it. Rather, I care to know God's heart in the death of the wicked, whoever they may be. Many times, I find that Christians take only one side (not that they're wrong, but that there's so much more to it than one might think). We are to love our enemies. We are not to rejoice in the death of the wicked. It's a humbling, grieving reality. It reminds us that we have a God who is to be feared. It reminds us that everyday, regardless if they are killers or orphaned children, there are thousands of souls slipping into hell. It reminds us that there are souls in desperate need of a Savior and to know the Truth.

Dr. Voddie Baucham posted this article, The Death of Osama bin Laden: What Kind of Justice Has Been Done?, on his Facebook page this past week, including these words:

Wonderful article to ponder in a culture that celebrates both Rob Bell (who thinks it's wrong for God's justice to be vindicated in Hell) and the killing of Osama Bin Ladin. And no, I'm not saying it was wrong to kill Bin Ladin; I'm saying it's hypocritical for a culture that increasingly deems itself too "sophisticated" for to death penalty (or Hell) to rejoice when someone takes a bullet through the head.

Baucham's comments jumped out at me! It's true. There are many rejoicing in the death of Osama, and other such men like him, and, yet, could it be that the many who are rejoicing might be those who hold fast to the message of universalism because they want to believe that their own story is a happily-ever-after forever? I'll be honest: Rob Bell stepped out of historic Christianity the moment he started preaching universalism more boldly, which was long before he wrote his now controversial book, Love Wins.

Rob Bell wrote, "hell is not forever, and love, in the end, wins and all will be reconciled to God.

This is what the emergent church is passionately embracing.

I could wish that this were true, Rob, if only the LORD declared it to be True. But I will not wish for something that is against my LORD's Word because He is the King of kings. He alone is the Supreme Authority. He justifies and He condemns and His judgement does not negate His divine Love. His Love does win, but not in the finite, humanistic way that our minds can only perceive.

The hard truth is that there is a Hell, which is an eternal torment, and many are falling away who will never know the eternal joy of being with their Creator. Should not this truth shut our mouths, humble our hearts, and drive us to our knees in deep groaning and prayer? Should not this truth make us weep?

Rob Bell, the emergent church, and whoever enjoy the kind of teaching for their 'itching ears' will not feel this urgency because the corrupted truth that they hold to is merely just a rebellion against God's holy Word and another Lie of the Enemy.

The lie that there is no eternal torment in hell is what will hinder the spread of the true Gospel. Why would there be any urgent need to declare the Gospel and fight and strive for the dying souls of this world if, in the end, every single soul will be reconciled to God? I'm saddened and upset about the Universalism message because it strips away from the power and glory of the Gospel! It strips away from the work of the Cross, the death of our Savior! We don't need Christ or His work on the Cross if we're all going to inevitably be saved! How do these lies not GRIEVE US? Yes, they may sound SO good. They may sound SO right. But we have to remember the way that the Serpent tempted Eve in the garden. The deception seems so beautiful and pleasing....but how awful and tormenting is the fruit of it!

To be sure, we are living in the times that Paul wrote of:

For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. ~ 2 Tim 4:3-4

I am compelled to share these words by John Piper on Bin Laden's death and the heart of God in all of this. I thank my God for men who uphold the authority of the Word and seek to uphold ALL the texts of Scripture rather than canceling some to bring out others. Holy Father, continue to preserve Your Word!

Is God Glad Osama Bin Laden's Dead?

May 2, 2011 | by: John Piper

God’s emotions are complex—like yours, only a million times more. Right now, your emotions about bin Laden are not simple, i.e. not single. There are several, and they intermingle. That is a good thing. You are God-like.

In response to Osama bin Laden’s death, quite a few tweets and blogs have cited the biblical truth that “God does not delight in the death of the wicked.” That is true.

It is also true that God does delight in the death of the wicked. There are things about every death that God approves in themselves and things about every death that God disapproves in themselves.

Is God Double-Minded?

This is not double talk. All thoughtful people make such distinctions. For example, if my daughter asks me if I like a movie, I might say yes or no to the same movie. Why? Because a movie can be assessed for its 1) acting, 2) plot, 3) cinematography, 4) nudity, 5) profanity, 6) suspense, 7) complexity, 8) faithfulness to the source, 9) reverence for God, 10) accurate picture of human nature, etc., etc., etc.

So my answer is almost always “yes, in some ways, and no in other ways.” But sometimes I will simply say yes, and sometimes no, because of extenuating circumstances.

Here is why I say God approves and disapproves the death of Osama bin Laden:

In one sense, human death is not God’s pleasure:

Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? . . . For I do not pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live. (Ezekiel 18:23, 32).

In another sense, the death and judgment of the unrepentant is God’s pleasure:

Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself.(Ezekiel 5:13]

[Wisdom calls out:] Because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you.(Proverbs 1:25–26)

Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her! (Revelation 18:20)

As the Lord took delight in doing you good . . . so the Lord will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you. (Deuteronomy 28:63)

We should not cancel out any of these passages but think our way through to how they can all be true.

God is Not Malicious or Bloodthirsty

My suggestion is that the death and misery of the unrepentant is in and of itself not a pleasure to God. God is not a sadist. He is not malicious or bloodthirsty. The death and suffering considered for itself alone is not his delight.

Rather, when a rebellious, wicked, unbelieving person is judged, what God has pleasure in is the exaltation of truth and righteousness, and the vindication of his own honor and glory.

When Moses warns Israel that the Lord will take pleasure in bringing ruin upon them and destroying them if they do not repent (Deuteronomy 28:63), he means that those who have rebelled against the Lord and moved beyond repentance will not be able to gloat that they have made the Almighty miserable.

God is not defeated in the triumphs of his righteous judgment. Quite the contrary. Moses says that when they are judged they will unwittingly provide an occasion for God to rejoice in the demonstration of his justice and his power and the infinite worth of his glory (see alsoRomans 9:22–23).

A Warning

Let this be a warning to us: God is not mocked. He is not trapped or cornered or coerced. Even on the way to Calvary he had legions of angels at his disposal: “No one takes my life from me; I lay it down of my own accord”—of his own good pleasure, for the joy that was set before him.

At the one point in the history of the universe where God looked trapped, he was in charge, doing precisely what he pleased—dying to justify the ungodly like you and me.

(Adapted from The Pleasures of God, pp. 66-74.)

And I end in my post with this final verse. Let us seek to be humbled by these words....

Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. ~ Romans 11:22

Put in the Fire for the Sake of Prayer

I was going through a bunch of old notebooks yesterday with the intent of finding notes that I had remembered taking on a prayer sermon from John Piper, as well as notes from Jonathan Edward's Religious Affections. It has been on my heart to compose a post specifically on prayer, discipline, and trials and how they are related. Most of these are direct quotes as well as notes from his sermon. It is a wonderful sketch of the prayer life found in the Gospel of John. First, he begins with some foundations on prayer.

Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. ~ John 14:13-14

Jesus connects praying with the glory of God with Himself as mediator. God is glorified in answering prayer; therefore, the aim of prayer is the glory of God. If we pray a me-prayer (my importance, my wants, my interests, my pursuits) and don't implicitly mean "Hallowed be Thy name" - that is not God-honoring prayer. The Lord protects this verse from selfish prayer.

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. ~ John 15:7-8

That's the qualification. The words of Christ should live in us. We should be so immersed in His Gospels and the NT that our thinking is transformed and we are able to discern the will of God. The asking is about fruit - Lord make me more loving, patient, humble, and servant-hearted!

Verse 16 connects 7 and 8.

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. ~ John 15:16

In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. ~ John 16:23-24

Prayer is for our joy. God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.

The thing about prayer that I have been wrestling with is keeping the right mindset about it. In fall '09, upon acceptance into Ellerslie: School of Honor, I was challenged by Steve Gallagher to begin my days in prayer. He didn't give me a time set, but he stressed to me the need to give the first moments of my day to the Lord. Naturally, it was difficult at first. For months I struggled with focusing my morning's on Christ. It seemed like my prayers were so weak and dry and short. I wanted to grow in my prayers, but it seemed nearly impossible. Well, living around prayer-filled people for 11 weeks at Ellerslie certainly changed that. All of sudden, I found I was hungry. I wasn't dulled and bored by prayer anymore; I became inflamed with it through daily meditation on the Word and worship and fellowship. Yeshua became my dearest Beloved! Being around devoted brothers and sisters can humble you into such a place. Nevertheless, it's been an entirely different experience in the past several months for me. As this season in my life has made way for many trials and challenges, I have found this hunger in my soul to pray, but sometimes keeping it merely out of the discipline that I've obtained through the entire year and half of waking up early with one aim and motive. Oh sure, I can wake up at 7:30 (haha, it took months to break my 10:00 wake-up hour) and give an hour+ to Christ.....but, honestly, am I yearning for Him? Or, am I doing it out of self-discipline? I read this quote last month from Desiring God:

We don't need self-discipline to pray continuously; we just need to be poor in spirit. ~ Paul Miller

It convicted me that I do get up and pray some mornings out of a sense of duty. It's not that I wake up thirsty to drink from His fountain of Life, but rather that I know that if I don't pray, then my days aren't going to start off on the right foot. While the latter can be true, it's more than just beginning my day right. It's about this incredibly deep need that I have in me to know Yeshua, to draw all life, love, and strength from His sweet presence. It's about the fact that I'm incredibly self-seeking and I have these awful, fleshy inclinations in me that need to be purified! It's about the fact that there are hurting people around me that need to know Christ's particular love for them through my allowing Christ to serve and love them through me, rather than to push them off, correct or rebuke them whenever they say hurtful or un-Biblical things, or deal impatiently with them. It's about Him having complete lordship over my life so that He would be on display in all my actions, words, feelings, thoughts, etc. And it's about Him being the first Love of my heart and life!

Try saying that to me in the morning. haha!

I need to preach this reality to myself moment by moment or else I look away and become consumed with some frivolous self-interest.

So, is regular, disciplined, Christ-exalting, God-glorifying prayer a duty? John Piper powerfully states,

"It’s a duty the way it’s the duty of a scuba diver to put on his air tank before he goes underwater. It’s a duty the way pilots listen to air traffic controllers. It’s a duty the way soldiers in combat clean their rifles and load their guns. It’s a duty the way hungry people eat food. It’s a duty the way thirsty people drink water. It’s a duty the way a deaf man puts in his hearing aid. It’s a duty the way a diabetic takes his insulin. It’s a duty the way Pooh Bear looks for honey. It’s a duty the way pirates look for gold."

"Just as there are physical means of life, there are spiritual means of grace."

Amen, amen!!!

Now, perhaps one of the most beautiful and painful things about prayer is the way that the Lord often teaches it to us. John Piper explains that in Zechariah 13:8-9 we are told "one of the main ways that God awakens earnest prayer in his children, namely, in the refining fires of suffering. Don’t worry about when this passage is talking about. Just see, for now, how God works, and use this word to prepare yourself for God’s prayer school."

"Verse 8: “In the whole land, declares the Lord, two thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one third shall be left alive.” So the one third represents God’s remnant—his faithful, imperfect, weak people, who do not pray with the kind of discipline and desperation and joy, and hunger for God, that they should. So what is God’s remedy? What is his school of prayer? Verse 9: “And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested.” Notice carefully what is happening. In his great love, God saved the one third from being cut off with the two thirds who perished (v. 8). And then as part of his love for them, he puts them in the fire to be tested and refined. That is normal Christianity. “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12)."

God rescues us from the flames of hell and puts us in the refining flames. He puts us in fire to awaken in us urgent prayer. We're not to teach Him how to teach. We submit to His school of prayer, not turn from it. This is His love.

In 1746, Jonathan Edwards wrote in his book, Religious Affections, "Trials are threefold benefit for true religion. It shows what is true religion. It distinguishes between what is true and false by testing. It not only manifests its truth but also enhances its genuine beauty and attractiveness. True virtue is loveliest when it is oppressed. It purifies and increases true religion. It frees it from false admixtures."

By the way, what he means by "religion" is true, Spirit-born, saving faith in Christ.

I cannot compare this season of trials to others or say it is harder than what others are currently going through. I can only submit, accept, and embrace the Father's loving purposes for this season. And Jonathan Edwards gives us good reason to embrace the hour of trial. We must remember this...

God's every motive in our life is love. He loves us too much to leave us how we are. ~ Eric Ludy

And to add to that, I would say that God is also working for our joy in Christ. I think this reveals to us that the opposite of joy is not suffering. It's despair in suffering. I want to be always patient in the hour of trial and testing.

Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage;wait for the LORD! ~ Psalm 27:14

Prayer is for the soul whose one cry is for Christ! Always and only ever Christ. May every trial, no matter how great or small, awaken in us a more intimate devotion to Christ, instruct us how to pray by His Spirit, and burn away all that is not of Him!

Because She Sought Refuge Under God's Wings

It's mid-week and I'm tired (as I usually am during the last stretch of a college semester). There is much on my mind and heart, but I'm blogging to share something beautiful that the Lord revealed to me today. It's such a simple truth, but O how often I need Him to feed my soul with it!

Every week, I prepare a devotional/teaching of some sort, relating to set-apart womanhood, for an 11 year old girl. The Lord has blessed me with a wonderful opportunity to disciple and pour into a young girl's life with His precious Word. I've only been doing this for a mere two months and, oftentimes, I find myself very inadequate for such a task of caring for a young soul. But no matter how many times I fail in communicating Biblical concepts to her (or over-communicating - I have a tendency to ramble terribly), the Lord is teaching me an abundance of things through these times of prayer, study, and preparation. It's amazing how often the lessons that I prepare for her are the exact words I need to hear. As I've been studying through Ruth with her, I came across this commentary by John Piper (some of the excerpts below are from his sermon on Ruth - Chapter 2) that really struck me. It is the essence of true womanhood. It is the essence of our daughter-hood before our divine Father.

nAnd she said, "See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law." But Ruth said, "Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the LORD do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you." ~ Ruth 1:15-17

n

nThe more you ponder these words the more amazing they become. Ruth's commitment to her destitute mother-in-law is simply astonishing. First, it means leaving her own family and land. Second, it means, as far as she knows, a life of widowhood and childlessness, because Naomi has no man to give, and if she married a non-relative, her commitment to Naomi's family would be lost. Third, it means going to an unknown land with a new people and new customs and new language. Fourth, it was a commitment even more radical than marriage: "Where you die I will die and there be buried" (v. 17). In other words, she will never return home, not even if Naomi dies. But the most amazing commitment of all is this: "Your God will be my God" (v. 16). Naomi has just said in verse 13, "The hand of the Lord has gone forth against me." Naomi's experience of God was bitterness. But in spite of this, Ruth forsakes her religious heritage and makes the God of Israel her God. Perhaps she had made that commitment years before, when her husband told her of the great love of God for Israel and his power at the Red Sea and his glorious purpose of peace and righteousness. Somehow or other Ruth had come to trust in Naomi's God in spite of Naomi's bitter experiences.

nHere we have a picture of God's ideal woman. Faith in God that sees beyond present bitter setbacks. Freedom from the securities and comforts of the world. Courage to venture into the unknown and the strange. Radical commitment in the relationships appointed by God.

nGod’s Mercy in Ruth 2:3:

"So she set forth and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers; and she happened to come to a part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech." She "happened to come"? The answer is God—the merciful providence of God guiding Ruth as she gleans. Ruth happened to come to Boaz's field because God is gracious and sovereign even when he is silent. As the Proverb (16:9) says, "A man's mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps."

nWhy Has Ruth Found Favor?

nNow in verses 8 and 9 Boaz approaches Ruth and shows her great kindness, even though she is a foreigner. He provides food by telling her to work in his field and stay close behind his maidens. He provides protection by telling the young men not to mistreat her. And he provides for her thirst by telling her to drink from what the men have drawn. So all of Boaz's wealth and godliness begin to turn for Ruth's good and safety.

nNow we come to the most important interchange in the chapter—verses 10–13. Ruth raises a question which turns out to be very profound. It's one that we all need to ask God. Hardly anything in our life is more important than the answer we get.

nThen she fell on her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, "Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, when I am a foreigner?"

nRuth knows that she is a Moabitess. From a natural viewpoint she has two strikes against her. She does not resent this, but accepts it. As a non-Israelite she does not expect any special treatment. Her response to Boaz's kindness is astonishment.

nShe is very different from most people today. We expect kindness and are astonished and resentful if we don't get our rights. But Ruth expresses her sense of unworthiness by falling on her face and bowing to the ground. Proud people don't say thanks. Humble people are made even more humble by being treated graciously. Grace is not intended to lift us out of lowliness. It's intended to make us happy in God.

nBoaz says in verse 12 that God is really the one who is rewarding Ruth for her love to Naomi. Boaz is only the instrument of God (as we will learn from Naomi in just a moment). But now notice the words, "The Lord recompense you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge." This verse does not encourage us to picture Ruth as an employee of God providing needed labor which he then as employer rewards with a good wage. The picture is of God as a great winged Eagle and Ruth as a threatened little eaglet coming to find safety under the Eagle's wings. The implication of verse 12 is that God will reward Ruth because she has sought refuge under his wings.

nThis is a common teaching in the Old Testament. For example, Psalm 57:1 says,

"Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in thee my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of thy wings I will take refuge."

Notice the word "for." Be merciful to me, for in thee my soul takes refuge. Why should God show mercy to Ruth? Because she has sought refuge under his wings. She has counted his protection better than all others. She has set her heart on God for hope and joy. And when a person does that, God's honor is at stake and he will be merciful. If you plead God's value as the source of your hope instead of pleading your value as the source of God's hope, then his unwavering commitment to his own value engages all his heart for your protection and joy.

nBut we must ask how Ruth's love for Naomi and her leaving her own family relate to her seeking refuge under the wings of God. The most likely suggestion is that Ruth was able to leave the refuge of her father and mother in Moab because she had found a refuge under the wings of God which was far superior. And evidently she saw a need in Naomi's life and sensed God calling her to meet that need.

nSo the relation between taking refuge under God's wings on the one hand and leaving home to care for Naomi on the other hand is that being under God's wings enabled Ruth to forsake human refuge and give herself in love to Naomi. Or another way to say it is that leaving home and loving Naomi are the result and evidence of taking refuge in God.

nSo now back to Ruth's question in verse 10, "Why have I found favor?" The answer is that she has taken refuge under the wings of God and that this has given her the freedom and desire to leave home and love Naomi. She has not earned mercy from God or Boaz. She is not their employee. They are not paying her wages for her work. On the contrary, she has honored them by admitting her need for their work and simply taking refuge in their generosity.

nThis is the message of the gospel in the Old Testament and the New Testament. God will have mercy on anyone (Palestinian or Israelite or American) who humbles himself like Ruth and takes refuge under the wings of God. Jesus said, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who are sent to you! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not! Behold, your house is forsaken and desolate.”

nAll the Pharisees had to do was to take refuge under the wings of Jesus. Stop justifying themselves. Stop relying on themselves. Stop glorifying themselves. But they would not. Ruth was not their model. No falling on their face before Jesus. No bowing down. No astonishment at grace.

Don't be like the Pharisees. Be like Ruth.

~ John Piper

Are we taking refuge in the Lord and, as a result, allowing Him to use us as vessels of grace in the souls around us?

Do we count the Lord's protection better than all others?

Have we set our hope on the Lord alone for hope and joy?

Lastly, I came across these two videos by the wonderful Voddie Baucham. He's so straight and to the point, but he communicates basic truths that are often so simple that we overlook them.

True Womanhood Looks Like Christ & The Incalculable Impact of a Woman

O Christ, live through me! May my whole heart genuinely and continually say:

"...for me it is good to be near God;I have made the Lord GOD my refuge,that I may tell of all your works." ~ Psalm 73:28