Learning From Ruth’s Faith

 We’ve been reading through the Book of Ruth in my women’s Bible study group. It’s a story I’ve heard before... but somehow, it’s hitting me differently this time.

Ruth’s loyalty... her faithfulness to Naomi even when everything fell apart... it’s the kind of faith I wish I had. That unwavering determination to stay, even when it would be easier to walk away.

But what really gets me is how quiet her faith is. She doesn’t give speeches or shout about her beliefs. She just makes a choice and sticks to it, step by step, with that simple declaration: “Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay.” (Ruth 1:16).

I wonder if I would’ve been that brave... if I would’ve clung to faith and loyalty the way Ruth did, or if I would’ve run when things got hard. Because it’s easy to feel faithful when everything’s fine. It’s the staying that’s hard... the small, unglamorous, day-to-day faithfulness.

We all talk about having faith like Ruth’s. But I think most days, I’m more like Naomi. Tired, bitter, wondering if there’s anything good left at all. Maybe that’s why their story matters so much... because it’s not just Ruth’s faith. It’s Naomi’s brokenness, too. And how God met them both where they were.

I guess that’s what I’m trying to remember... that faith doesn’t always look like Ruth’s courage. Sometimes it looks like Naomi’s emptiness... her struggle to believe there’s anything left to hope for. And maybe that’s okay.