DCLM Daily Manna 2025: DCLM Daily Manna 30 January 2025: A Decisive Moment
Text: Ruth 1:6-22 (KJV)
6 Then she arose with her daughters in law, that she might return from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the country of Moab how that the LORD had visited his people in giving them bread.
7 Wherefore she went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters in law with her; and they went on the way to return unto the land of Judah.
8 And Naomi said unto her two daughters in law, Go, return each to her mother’s house: the LORD deal kindly with you, as ye have dealt with the dead, and with me.
9 The LORD grant you that ye may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Then she kissed them; and they lifted up their voice, and wept.
10 And they said unto her, Surely we will return with thee unto thy people.
11 And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go with me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?
12 Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have an husband also to night, and should also bear sons;
13 Would ye tarry for them till they were grown? would ye stay for them from having husbands? nay, my daughters; for it grieveth me much for your sakes that the hand of the LORD is gone out against me.
14 And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her.
15 And she said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law.
16 And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:
17 Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.
18 When she saw that she was stedfastly minded to go with her, then she left speaking unto her.
19 So they two went until they came to Bethlehem. And it came to pass, when they were come to Bethlehem, that all the city was moved about them, and they said, Is this Naomi?
20 And she said unto them, Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me.
21 I went out full, and the LORD hath brought me home again empty: why then call ye me Naomi, seeing the LORD hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?
22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter in law, with her, which returned out of the country of Moab: and they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest.
KEY VERSE: Ruth 1:14
“And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her.”
When Robert Flaherty’s entire film collection went up in flames, he responded by returning to the Far North to make an unforgettable film about the Eskimos. The result was the classic 1922 documentary, Nanook of the North. When Thomas Edison’s manufacturing facilities in West Orange, N.J., burnt down in December 1914, he lost almost $1 million worth of equipment, together with the record of much of his work. The next morning, walking about the charred embers of his hopes and dreams, the 67-year-old inventor was quoted to have said: “There is value in disaster. All our mistakes are burned up. Now we can start anew.” He eventually became a very successful inventor and celebrity. Like Edison, the right outlook on life helps to defog the lens through which we look at life. Tragedy can become a train to propel us to further glory as captured in the story of Ruth.
In the text, we see the decisive moment when life-altering and destiny-making choices were made. Following the loss of almost all that matters to her, Naomi decided to return to Bethlehem Judah. While counselling her two daughters-in-law on their next step, decisions made by these personalities were not only a turning point for the Elimelech family but also for mankind. Orpah considered her season of adversity a time for turning back. Ruth chose to move ahead with Naomi, notwithstanding the future uncertainties. That decision opened the door for her to become one of the progenitors of the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5,16).
Ruth thus teaches us that after a loss, we can still win. And that we must never allow one loss to put a lid on our ability to continue winning in life. In our trying moments, we must rely on God and walk by faith. Rather than close that chapter of her life, Ruth decided to follow Naomi back to Bethlehem Judah. As the God of mercy waited for her to make a blessing out of her bitter experiences, God is still doing the same today for those who will trust Him.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
There’s value in disaster. There’s valour in being decisive!
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Matthew 4-5
Daily Manna 30 January 2025
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