What would I do?

 

Ruth 3–4; Psalms 11–12; Jeremiah 38; Acts 28

What would I do if I were a single widow and my mother-in-law told me to go to a sleeping male relative and put myself under his blankets? What would I do if I were a well-known but disliked prophet and the officials of my country lowered me into a muddy cistern without food and no hope of survival? What would I do if I were an evangelist under arrest and people came to me in great numbers to hear the Gospel?

Sometimes the stories in the Bible are overwhelming in their demonstration of the will of God. Ruth did what her mother-in-law told her, then Boaz married Ruth and their son became King David’s grandfather and David became a prominent person in the human linage of Jesus Christ.

Jeremiah wasn’t long in the cistern. Someone who cared went to the king and he ordered this man to be pulled out, a rescue done with ropes and rags. The king wanted God’s word on his fate and Jeremiah was not afraid to tell him what to do when the Chaldeans came to seize him and take him to Babylon.

Paul didn’t complain at all about his situation. He stayed under house arrest for two years and faithfully shared the good news of Jesus Christ with droves of people, some believing and becoming members of the family of God.

These stories read like fantasy compared to today’s news. Some of it is more like the experience of David when he wrote Psalm 12:

“Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone; for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man. Everyone utters lies to his neighbor; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak. May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts, those who say, ‘With our tongue we will prevail, our lips are with us; who is master over us?’ . . . . On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

If I listen only to the news, these parts of the psalm seem the norm, particularly the last line where David laments that evil is exalted. These days not only does that seem true, but godliness hardly ever gets any headlines.

Even so, God gives me opportunities to talk with His people. They tell me their thoughts and what is happening in their lives. As a result, I am thinking that the Lord is still at work, still protecting His people and bringing purpose to why they are here. God still uses those who seem insignificant to do great things in His plan. He listened to David’s prayer; these are the lines from the middle of this psalm:

“Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the LORD; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.” The words of the LORD are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times. You, O LORD, will keep them; you will guard us from this generation forever. (Psalm 12:1–8)

Because of the grace of God, I can be assured that He has purpose for each life, even mine. I can trust Him to take care of me even if I get tossed in the mud. I can also trust Him to use me as He sees fit, whether that seems insignificant in my eyes or vital, like sharing the Gospel with many people.

APPLY: The daily news can be threatening as can the proximity of danger, yet the Lord is the same today as He has always been. Like Ruth, David, Jeremiah and Paul, I can trust Him with the big picture and the tiniest details. My life is in His hands.