Gardez la foi

“Keep the faith” - Not all battles are ours to fight when we try to do things on our own. When our strength runs out, it’s time to lean on Jesus. When fear yells in our ear, makes our heart beat wildly; its time to believe and have hope. When heaven seems quiet and no answers show up, it’s time to keep praying. When the path is blurring and we feel lost, we need to keep walking in faith when we can’t see the road ahead. Life won’t always go the way we want it to. That’s okay. Jesus never leaves our side.

Recently I listened to a sermon about Ruth, the Moabite widow who was part of the lineage of Jesus. Naomi, Ruth’s mother-in-law, lost her husband and two sons, and decided to return to Israel. One daughter in law, Orpah, chose to stay behind, but Ruth chose to follow and walk alongside Naomi on a 50 mile journey. She could have stayed behind, been safe in familiar territory and perhaps married a Moabite man. Instead, she uttered these words to her hurting relative from Ruth 1:16-17 (The Message):

“Don’t force me to leave you; don’t make me go home. Where you go, I go; and where you live, I’ll live. Your people are my people, your God is my god; where you die, I’ll die, and that’s where I’ll be buried, so help me God—not even death itself is going to come between us!”

Ruth devoted herself to walking in faith beside Naomi all the way to Bethlehem. She could have stayed behind. She could have chosen a different life, but thankfully she chose to walk the road she could not see.

I sometimes wonder about the choices we make. Why do we succumb to our thoughts when God has given us His Word and tools for change? Why do we think we can do it all on our own when all we need to do is ask for help? Why do we worry, fret and fear tomorrow when even that is not promised to us on this earth? Why do we get angry and disgruntled when things don’t go our way? God tells us in His Word to “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:2) Perhaps it’s time for a reset.