As it happened

 

Ruth 2:1-9

How do you feel about chance or happenstance? I'll gladly affirm the power of pot luck over good luck. But sometimes things just seem to work out in unusual ways. In the moment, it can be hard to see how something should work out. Plus, our interpretations about how and why something happens can be wrong. Often, only hindsight helps us make better sense of our experiences. Better sense. Not always perfect sense. "As it happened," Ruth ended up in a field belonging to Boaz (Ruth 2:3). Knowing how the story ends, that sounds like a lucky draw for her. She could have ended up at anyone's field. Naomi even later instructs her to make sure to stay with Boaz. Otherwise, "someone might bother you in another field" (2:22). It just so happened Ruth ended up somewhere that could be advantageous for both her and Naomi. It just so happened Boaz is someone who could end their misery. As it happened sounds like luck and that doesn't feel all that spiritual. But some things feel like lucky breaks or mere bad luck. This is where I reflect back on the idea of the will of God. The idea is that not everything that happens to you is the will of God. But there is the will of God in everything that happens to you. That has brought me much comfort over the years.  Maybe God directed Ruth to that field. She's a part of Jesus' genealogy, after all. So, God must've been directing her path, right? But wouldn't that mean God, too, took Ruth's family from her? That's more difficult to reconcile. For now, I'll admit to you my shortcoming, using Dora Greenwell's words: I am not skilled to understand what God has willed, what God has planned; I only know that at his right hand is One who is my Savior! I'm okay with the "as it happened" moments in my life. Whether God made them happen or not, I trust the Lord's promises. We will not be forsaken. God will be with us. Somehow, God will make our paths straight. Stay blessed...john