Do you seek God’s face during times of distress, or do overwhelming circumstances cloud your spiritual vision? Do you find yourself turning away from God’s tender mercy and then taking matters into your own hands?

The Old Testament is filled with stories about men and women who allowed hardships to overshadow their faith in God and his everlasting love. The Israelites grew impatient and fearful waiting for Moses to return from Mount Sinai. Collectively, they decide to put their trust in a golden calf instead of the God who parted the Red Sea and led them out of their Egyptian captivity. Likewise, Abraham’s wife, Sarai, grew tired of waiting. When she couldn’t hear her biological clock ticking anymore, and her child rearing years seemed to be gone, she offered her maid servant, Hagar, to Abraham as a surrogate mother. These are examples where lack of faith led to poor outcomes.

The Bible is also filled with stories of people, Jews and Gentiles alike, who trusted God despite facing insurmountable odds. In the Book of Ruth, we discover a Gentile, a Moabite, who found herself in a desperate situation and still chose to yield her heart to God. The young woman is Ruth, Naomi’s daughter-in-law. Ruth had every strike against her. Like her mother-in-law, she was destitute, widowed, and childless. But unlike Naomi, who rejected God and as a result became despondent, Ruth remained hopeful and trusted in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. When her mother-in-law urged her to return to her own country, Ruth replied, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God” (Ruth 1:16 (ESV), emphasis mine).

Ruth accompanies Naomi to Bethlehem. When the town folk call Naomi by name, she responds, “Do not call me Naomi, call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty” (Ruth 1:20-21). Naomi is in so much pain, she throws out God’s love. Tragically, she doesn’t realize that when she cut all ties with God, she cut the cords of hope.

Meanwhile, Ruth faithfully goes into the fields to glean kernels of grain. Coincidentally – then again, with God, there are no coincidences – she ends up in the fields of a family member named Boaz. At this point in the story, we see a sudden transformation in Naomi, who remembers the law of the kinsman redeemer, which says a male relative has the privilege and responsibility to act on behalf of a relative who was in trouble, danger, or need. Boaz becomes their kinsman redeemer even though he isn’t Naomi’s closest male relative. He takes Ruth as his wife, and they bear a son named Obed. Father to Jesse, grandfather to King David, Obed serves an important role in the lineage of Christ.

Like Naomi and Ruth, we have a Kinsman Redeemer who is our hope in the midst of life’s tragedy and pain. His name is Jesus, and he is the essence of God’s tender mercy and everlasting love.

As Christian grandparents, we are called to pass down a legacy of faith in the Kinsman Redeemer to our grandchildren. This includes helping them to understand that God’s love for them is immeasurable, immutable, and everlasting, even during times of hardship and pain. We accomplish this by modeling a faith like Ruth’s. 

If you are struggling with adversity of any kind, I recommend that you consider the following five points:

• Submit your heart to God daily despite your circumstances. Surrender control by acknowledging God’s ways are higher than your ways and his thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9, ESV)
• Spend time daily in God’s Presence by studying God’s Word and committing yourself to prayer.
• Avoid isolationism by sharing your situation with two or three trusted friends who are spiritually mature and will faithfully stand beside you in prayer.
• Stay connected with a community of faith through weekly worship.
• Practice gratitude by giving thanks each evening for the manna that God provided you that day. This manna can be an encouraging word, a hug from a friend, financial support, an answer to prayer, physical or emotional healing, and so on.

Let us give thanks for Ruth and the lessons she offers all generations about what it means to yield our hearts to God in the face of adversity.