Read Ruth 2:1-13*
When you reap your harvest in your field and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be left. . . . When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, do not glean what is left; it shall be for the alien, the orphan, and the widow.
-Deuteronomy 24:1921 (NRSV)
WHEN Ruth and Naomi found themselves widowed, homeless, and hungry, they survived by gleaning in the fields of Boaz. Showing the compassion instructed in Deuteronomy, Boaz left some grain in his field. He welcomed gleaners, saying, "The Lord be with you."
What does this passage tell me about generosity, about leaving something for those in need? I don't have a field or a vineyard, but I do have a calendar. Can I learn to leave time to help those who need food or shelter or some other gift of compassion that I can offer?
Leaving time unscheduled frees me from worry about where I need to be next. Leaving time free allows me to be interrupted if a friend needs someone to listen or if a neighbor needs a meal. Leaving space in my schedule gives me time to slow down and think of others, to think of God's grace given for me and of the ways I can offer that grace to another.
by Amy Fryar Kennedy (Michigan, USA)
Monday, May 4, 2009
Thursday, April 30, 2009
From a Dummy?
Read Isaiah 55:1-5
The Lord says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls."
-Jeremiah 6:16 (NIV)
IN a large department store, I could not figure out where an item was located. I saw the back of what looked like a store employee standing next to a counter. I walked up from behind and said, "Excuse me," only to discover that I was speaking to a mannequin. I felt foolish and hoped that no one noticed. The designer had done a great job of making the mannequin look realistic, but it could never have helped me.
How many of us in the world seek guidance from that which is not real? We may believe that true happiness comes from having certain possessions or from wealth or beauty. We may follow false religious leaders. We may harm our bodies with drugs or alcohol. All along, the real God stands near calling to us and signaling the true way.
We don't have to rely on "dummies" because we have the living God who can supply what we lack. God asks us to read the Bible, to study it, and even to challenge what it says, confident that it will prove itself true in all circumstances.
by Bob La Forge (New Jersey, USA)
The Lord says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls."
-Jeremiah 6:16 (NIV)
IN a large department store, I could not figure out where an item was located. I saw the back of what looked like a store employee standing next to a counter. I walked up from behind and said, "Excuse me," only to discover that I was speaking to a mannequin. I felt foolish and hoped that no one noticed. The designer had done a great job of making the mannequin look realistic, but it could never have helped me.
How many of us in the world seek guidance from that which is not real? We may believe that true happiness comes from having certain possessions or from wealth or beauty. We may follow false religious leaders. We may harm our bodies with drugs or alcohol. All along, the real God stands near calling to us and signaling the true way.
We don't have to rely on "dummies" because we have the living God who can supply what we lack. God asks us to read the Bible, to study it, and even to challenge what it says, confident that it will prove itself true in all circumstances.
by Bob La Forge (New Jersey, USA)
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