Most of us carry a picture in our minds of how life is supposed to go. You try to make good decisions. You follow God. You try to live right. And somewhere in the back of your mind, you assume life will move forward in a predictable direction. You think, if I obey God things will make sense. But sometimes life goes off script. The plan falls apart. The future you imagined disappears.

And suddenly you are left asking questions like: “Where is God in this? Why did this happen? Did I miss something?”

Most people assume that when God is working we will see it clearly. We expect obvious signs and clear direction and moments where everything makes sense. But sometimes life feels like a chapter where nothing is happening except loss. The hardest question people ask is this: “Where is God in this?” That question sits right in the middle of the book of Ruth, because when Ruth begins, Naomi’s life looks less like a blessing and more like a slow unraveling. But what Naomi cannot see is that God is already writing redemption in the background. And that is often how God works. God does some of His greatest work when it looks like nothing is happening at all.

Loss

When Life Empties Out

Ruth 1:1–5

In the days when the judges ruled in Israel, a severe famine came upon the land. So, a man from Bethlehem in Judah left his home and went to live in the country of Moab, taking his wife and two sons with him. The man’s name was Elimelech, and his wife was Naomi. Their two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in the land of Judah. And when they reached Moab, they settled there. Then Elimelech died, and Naomi was left with her two sons. The two sons married Moabite women. One married a woman named Orpah, and the other a woman named Ruth. But about ten years later, both Mahlon and Kilion died. This left Naomi alone, without her two sons or her husband.

The story begins with famine. A man named Elimelech takes his family from Bethlehem to Moab just to survive. At first it seems practical. Maybe even wise. But then the unraveling begins. Elimelech dies. Naomi’s two sons marry Moabite women. Then both sons die. And suddenly Naomi is left with nothing. Three widows. No husband. No sons. No security. In that culture, that meant something terrifying. It meant no future.

Loss has a way of rewriting how we see everything.

Ruth 1:20–21

“Don’t call me Naomi, she responded. Instead call me Mara, for the Almighty has made life very bitter for me. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me home empty. Why call me Naomi when the Lord has caused me to suffer and the Almighty has sent such tragedy upon me?”

The name Naomi means pleasant. The name Mara means bitter. Naomi is saying, “My life used to make sense but now everything tastes bitter.” You can almost hear the exhaustion in her voice. She is not giving a theological lecture. She is just being honest. She is basically saying, “I did everything right, and my life still fell apart.” And if we are honest, there are people in this room who have felt the same way. You prayed. You believed. You trusted God. And yet life did not unfold the way you expected. But here is what Naomi cannot see. God is not absent. God is quietly working behind the scenes. Oswald Chambers said, “Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading.”

Loyalty

When Faith Appears in Unexpected Places

Right in the middle of Naomi’s bitterness something remarkable happens. Ruth speaks.

Ruth 1:16

“But Ruth replied, ‘Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go. Wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.’ ” Ruth is a Moabite. She is an outsider. She is someone who does not belong to Israel. But Ruth refuses to abandon Naomi. She says, “Wherever you go I will go. Wherever you live I will live. Your people will be my people. Your God will be my God.”

This is more than loyalty. This is conversion. Ruth is choosing the God of Israel over the gods of Moab. There is a powerful Hebrew word used earlier in this moment. Ruth 1:14 says, “Ruth clung to Naomi.” The Hebrew word is dabaq. It means to cling tightly, to hold fast, to attach yourself to someone. It is the same word used in Genesis 2:24 when it says a husband shall be joined to his wife. It describes covenant loyalty. Ruth is saying, “I am not leaving you.” Even in Naomi’s bitterness God had already placed the first piece of redemption beside her.

Sometimes the first sign that God is working is not a miracle. Sometimes it is simply a faithful person refusing to leave your side. You might think God has abandoned you. But God may have already placed someone in your life that is evidence He is still working. Charles Spurgeon said,

“God is too good to be unkind and too wise to be mistaken. And when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart.”

Providence

When God Is Quietly Arranging Things

Eventually Naomi and Ruth return to Bethlehem. They are poor. They have no land. They have no security. So, Ruth goes out to gather leftover grain in the fields. And then we read something fascinating.

Ruth 2:3

“So, Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters. And as it happened, she found herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz.” The phrase “as it happened” sounds like coincidence. But the Hebrew language is actually almost humorous. The wording suggests something like her chance chanced upon the field of Boaz. From Ruth’s perspective, it looks random. But from God’s perspective, it is providence. Providence means God is arranging events even when we cannot see it. Ruth just happens to end up in Boaz’s field. Boaz just happens to notice her. Boaz just happens to be a close relative. But nothing about this is accidental. What looks random to us is often intentional to God. A. W. Tozer said, “A low view of God is the cause of a hundred lesser evils.” God is never reacting. God is always orchestrating.

Redemption

When God Was Working All Along

Boaz was what the Old Testament called a redeemer. The Hebrew word is ga’al. It describes a kinsman redeemer, a close family member who had both the right and the responsibility to step in when a family experienced loss. If land had been lost, the redeemer could buy it back. If a family line was about to disappear, the redeemer could marry the widow and preserve the family name. The redeemer restored what had been broken so the family would not disappear. That is exactly what Naomi needed. Her husband was gone. Her sons were gone. Her future looked finished. But Boaz had the ability to step in and restore what had been lost. So, Boaz redeems the land. He marries Ruth. And Naomi’s family is given a future again.

By the end of the book Naomi is holding a grandson in her arms.

Ruth 4:17

The neighbor women said, “Now at last Naomi has a son again.” The woman who said she was empty is now full again. But the redemption story is even bigger than Naomi realizes. That child becomes the grandfather of King David. And generations later Jesus Christ will be born from that same family line. Naomi thought her story was ending. But God was writing a redemption story that would reach the entire world. 

The Bible tells an even bigger redemption story. Humanity lost what we could not restore. Sin broke what we could not fix. And just like Naomi needed a redeemer, we needed one too. That is why Jesus came.

1Peter 1:18–19

“For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.” Jesus stepped in to restore what sin had taken.

Some people listening today may feel like Naomi. Life did not unfold the way you expected. Plans   fell apart. Loss came. And you may have wondered where God is in all of this. But Naomi’s story teaches us something powerful. God was writing redemption the whole time. Just because you cannot see what God is doing does not mean He is not working.

The God of Scripture specializes in bringing life out of nowhere. Joseph thought his life was ruined in a prison cell, but God was positioning him for a palace. David thought he was forgotten in a field, but God was preparing him for a throne. Naomi thought her story had ended, but God was preparing the family line of the Messiah.

Romans 8:28

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose.

Just a thought,

PSS

Sometimes God’s answers don’t arrive the way we imagine they should. We expect the obvious solution, the dramatic moment, or the strong and visible leader. But throughout Scripture, God often works through the unlikely and the overlooked so that His power is unmistakable. When the answer comes from a place no one expected, it reminds us that the victory didn’t come from human strength but from God’s hand.

Many times, the very thing we think is a disadvantage becomes the instrument God uses. What we see as weakness, limitation, or an ordinary circumstance may actually be the place where God chooses to work. The Bible is full of examples of God using people and moments others would dismiss. God has never needed perfect people or perfect situations. He simply needs willing hearts.

So, if you find yourself waiting for God to move, don’t assume He has forgotten you. The answer may not look the way you pictured it, but that does not mean it isn’t on the way. God still hears when His people cry out, and He still brings deliverance in ways that remind us He alone is the Deliverer.

Just a thought,

PSS

Victory can make us loud, but compromise always grows quiet. Joshua 6 is walls falling and people shouting. Joshua 7 is funerals and fear. Nothing changed on the outside. The army was still strong. The promise was still true. The problem was buried under a tent. What we hide has a way of affecting more than just us. Hidden sin never stays hidden. It either comes out through confession or it comes out through exposure.

Achan said I saw, I wanted, I took, I hid. That is still the progression today. It starts small. It feels private. It seems manageable. But what is buried in secret eventually weakens what we are building in public. You are only as healthy as what you are willing to bring into the light. God is not trying to shame you. He is trying to free you. The light is not a threat to the believer. It is an invitation to healing.

The valley of Trouble in Joshua became a door of Hope in Hosea. That is the Gospel. What could have destroyed you can become the very place God restores you if you will bring it into the light. Do not wait for exposure. Choose confession. Freedom is always on the other side of honesty. We bring it into the light by confessing our sins to God so He can forgive us and heal us. That’s the way we stay in relationship with Him.      

Just a thought, 

PSS

Grace has always had a way of showing up in the places we least expect it. We tend to assume God works through the obvious, the polished, and the qualified. But throughout Scripture, and throughout our own lives, God proves again and again that He is not limited by our expectations. He reaches into broken stories, unlikely lives, and impossible situations. He does not wait for perfection. He responds to faith. What disqualifies someone in the eyes of people often becomes the very place where God displays His mercy.

Sometimes the greatest barrier to experiencing grace is not our past but our perception. We convince ourselves that we have gone too far, failed too much, or waited too long. But God has never been intimidated by anyone’s history. He is not looking for those who have it all together. He is looking for those who will trust Him. Grace does not begin when you become worthy. Grace begins when you believe. The moment faith rises, grace moves.

And maybe the deeper challenge is not just believing that grace can reach us, but believing it can reach others. God is still writing redemption stories. He is still calling people out of darkness and into His family. He is still surprising us with whom He chooses and how He works. Our role is not to decide who qualifies. Our role is to trust His grace, receive it fully, and extend it freely.               

Just a thought,

PSS

Daniel 6:3 (KJ21) — Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.

Frenemies:

Excellent is defined as: extremely good, outstanding, extraordinary, pre-eminent. When you begin to excel, you will find that people, coworkers, may look for ways to hold you back and tear you down. How should you deal with those who cheer at your failure and even try to cause it to happen?

Holiness:

Conduct your life above reproach. That doesn’t mean perfectly — it simply means you will have nothing to hide. You work hard and produce. You purpose to live a life that would be hard to criticize. You may get criticized for your faith, but not because of the way you act or work. Learn to walk and live according to the word of God — in holiness, living a moral and pure life, serving the Lord in a way that pleases Him, separating yourself for His service.

Purpose:

An excellent spirit is purposing to live a life honoring God, purposing to do things right, not the good-enough attitude. You work hard and purpose to be outstanding or extremely good. It’s becoming more and more difficult to find people who possess an excellent spirit about them. But we can all strive to be better, do better, and live better.

Let’s live a life with excellence.

Just a thought,

PSS