Gleanings from Ruth

Ruth was instructed to wash herself, to anoint herself, to put on her best and go down to the threshing floor but not to make herself known. She was in a process of preparation. The Lord Himself is preparing us but there are steps we are required to take. The Lord has cleansed and He has anointed us with the Holy Spirit and called us to put on the best – Jesus – and go to the place He has prepared for us. It’s in this process that the Lord desires for us not to make our self known. We are to trust and allow Him to finish the work He has started in us so His purposes will be made known.

The Lord desires us to be ready, willing and in the right place waiting for His instructions. Sometimes it seems as though we are in the middle of the night and we're wonder if the morning is truly coming, that He makes His plans known. We may not be aware of His plans but they are still in the works. The Lord can and will bring about His plans even when it seems like it’s the middle of the night - our darkest hour.

The Lord calls us to know Him and who He is within us. It’s when we know and are known by Him that we will be able to make Him known to those around us. Many times, it’s when we only have a glimpse of a vision that we try to make it known. Knowing who we are and whose we are will bring blessings to us and others.  It's easy to fall into fear in the midst of the preparation for the blessing.

There are some things we are not to make known to people. The Lord in His time will reveal for others His plans and purposes. Many times it’s very easy for us to tell people what we want the Lord Himself to reveal. Unless the Lord reveals, it usually won't be seen regardless of how much we try to make it known. Many times when we tell all we know we hinder the Lord in His secret doings. What the Lord is doing in secret reveals who He is in us. When we know who He is in us, then we will begin to know Him in the secret place. It’s in the secret place that we begin to see and understand He is in control of all things, no matter how they seem to appear. It is by this knowledge that we can rest in Him, trusting in His process.

The Lord desires to take what we already have to bless us. Many times, we look for the blessing to come to us from something new or different. The Lord delights in taking the familiar and turning it into the blessing. When the Lord sends His blessing or His provision, we must have a way prepared within us to contain what He is pouring unto us. Many times, we think - if I just had the blessing, provision, etc I would be able to do this or ... Many times He waits until we have nothing so He can reveal to us who He is, to move us from one level of faith to another.

We are released after the fact to begin to tell of what He has done for us. We often make the mistake of telling people what the Lord is going to do prematurely, causing those around us to wonder where we're coming from. We lose sight of the fact those around us cannot see what we see and cannot hear what we hear. But after the fact, it cannot be discounted because it is something real, tangible, or measured. This causes not only our faith to be built up, but it increases faith in those around us. The Lord is working on our behalf and He will not rest until He has settled things to accomplish all He purposes.

Ruth was an outsider or one who was not considered by those in Israel (the church) but the Lord had a plan where He would demonstrate His mercy. He would demonstrate that His ways are not our ways; He looks at the heart. He saw Ruth's heart. Ruth was one who was outside of those called of God but the Lord was so moved by the attitude of her heart in the events and situations of her everyday life.

Ruth was not in the lineage of David and of the Lord Jesus Christ by accident or because she just happened to be, she was there by divine purpose for His destiny. She didn't set out to make this happen. She lived her life and walked with the Lord according to what was in her heart, day by day, trusting in Him to provide and take care of her. She walked by that unseen, unknowing faith which grew in her heart by the Lord.

Walking, living and serving Naomi was not an easy task, but was born of something birthed within her heart. Naomi was an embittered woman, but Ruth in faith and trust in the Lord received from her. Ruth's heart was so open she was able to receive instruction from a woman who was well acquainted with her own bitterness. In the midst of a difficult or trying situation that the Lord looks upon the attitude of our heart to receive His word from the vessels of His choosing. It’s often in the midst of the darkest point of a difficult situation that the Lord's plans are in the process of unfolding. There is a time when all seems dark when we are to be still and wait for the Lord's unfolding purpose.

Ruth did not purpose to become Boaz's wife; she purposed to serve the Lord following the advice and counsel of the one in her life that the Lord was using. The Lord uses whom He wills and many times we think, well this person is... so we don't pay attention. Too often, we are so focused on how we think things are going to work out we fail to see some of the things the Lord is accomplishing in the molding of our character into the image of His son, Jesus.

We must stay focused on the Lord, walking according to all He has deposited within our heart knowing that whatever the circumstance and who ever we find ourselves with, the Lord is truly in control. He is working according to His plan and His purpose and it will work out for our good according to His purposes if we remain focused on Him rather than to be overcome or overwhelmed by our circumstances. Open and ready hearts before the Lord can go in any direction He chooses. Many times, we find ourselves in situations with people who the Lord, unbeknown to us, is using to move us closer to his destined purpose.

We find ourselves during these times focused on ourselves, the situation or the people causing us to be overwhelmed and giving place to our emotions to become a motivating force. A person motivated by emotions will be unstable, because we will be double minded always at the mercy of what we feel. What we feel is what we feel, but that doesn't make the feelings right and certainly not a measure of reality. Keeping our eyes on the Lord will cause us to see Him, as He is, high and lifted up, above every situation, circumstance, and purpose. Having our eyes fixed on Him makes a way for any possibility.

It’s in the "any" possibilities that the suddenlies come. He is not only the God of the impossible but also of the suddenlies. However, many of the suddenlies usually have much required advance preparation. To look to the suddenlies and the impossibilities, one has to walk and live in the process of preparation.

This is a season of preparation for the release of the suddenlies of Lord in all He has purposed and all He destined for our lives, and for the advancement of His Kingdom.