BEING
A RUTH
[PART
1]
LESSONS
FROM LADY IN WAITING
I read a lot and
when a book has impact on me I share it [not lend it per say] but recommend it.
This particular book was gifted to me by a friend in 2011 and the lessons
probably speak more to me now than when I first read it.
I am sure by
now most of you have read LADY IN WAITING by Jackie Kendall and Debby Jones. If
not and you are a single Christian woman or are a woman wanting to disciple and
mentor single Christian women this is a great book to get.
It is loosely
based on the book of Ruth and draws lessons from the whole Bible. It is closely
related to a previous article I wrote
This is more
about being Ruth and what it means
I this post
and the next I will give an overview of what it means to be a Lady in Waiting
and share a bit about my personal journey. Yes this is a very personal post as
well, so here goes…..
LADY OF
RECKLESS ABANDONMENT
This is one
who recklessly abandons herself to the Lordship of God by diligently trusting Him
with her state of singleness. A woman becomes a woman when she becomes what God
wants her to be. Fulfilment for a Christian woman begins with the Lordship of Christ
in every area of her life.
I like how it
sounds, reckless abandonment. It’s almost like you do not have a care in the
world. In our African culture the male figure in your life is your identity
whether it’s your dad, brother, husband, son, you are practically invisible
unless you have male accompaniment. I actually read a blog yesterday that says
how hard it is to travel as a single African Woman in Africa as a tourist. It
was funny how suspicious they treated the blog author. It was almost like she
was suspected of a crime. She has been treated better in other countries but
Africa is another ball game, you need to have a male companion.
Thank God in
His Word it’s not like that. He wants us to recklessly abandon ourselves to
following Him. Ruth had left all she know that is why it was reckless. She didn’t
not think and counter think she just did because in her heart of hearts she had
nothing to lose. She was a new widow and her father-in-law was also dead. Even
in Moab life was going to be difficult but now she had God.
As a Christian
African Woman I do have God and I have nothing to lose when I choose to
surrender all to Him. It’s not the easiest thing in our culture because even
when you don’t have a care in the world some auntie or relative will have that
care for you and convince you how it should be a care for you as well. But
ideally the depth of my relationship with God is up to me. No one can interfere
unless I let them.
Colossians 2:9-10New King James Version
(NKJV)
9 For in Him dwells all the fullness of the
Godhead bodily; 10 and you are complete in
Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
LADY OF DILIGENCE
To be a
lady of diligence to me means living my life and keeping busy not having a pity
party and feeling sorry for myself alone at home. Trust me I have been there
done that and I realized life was passing me by.
So I did
the exercise in the book and decided to see just how dedicated I was and how I was
using my time in service to God. I can say I am doing well so far. Better than I
thought. So let me just list them and suggest, male or female you may want to
consider these as you wait.
And note
that this is a huge sacrifice
·
Ministry
of Teaching –sharing with others your faith, not just receiving the Word for
yourself
·
Ministry
of Encouragement – sharing a word or two to someone who is down
·
Ministry
of prayer – pray with a prayer partner on a regular basis for you and others
·
Ministry
of service- be of use where you are before God brings someone to care for you
·
Ministry
of Writing-write a postcard or letter of encouragement like Paul in New
Testament
·
Ministry
of Listening- Listen to one who needs and ear without giving advice but praying
silently for them
·
Ministry
of Hospitality- Go the extra mile with the sick, bereaved and needy. Make a
care meal, sit with them, visit them etc
·
Ministry
of Helps- help with daily tasks once in a while, shopping, errands etc
They all make
a huge difference in someones life and can be scheduled into daily routines.
And yes you can still join the choir if that is what you prefer
LADY OF
FAITH
I know that
for me this is big because sometimes I do let anxiety and worry overwhelm me. I
like the scripture
Romans
10:17New King James Version (NKJV)
17 So
then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
It just means
that I can increase my faith by continuously being in God’s Word.
God knows
what I need and when I need it and I don’t have to live a life where I fret
over all the details.
I decided to just give this year a diligently
obey God attitude and see where it leads. Trust me for a planner like me that
is no easy task, but I can say so far so good and I am way happier for sure.
LADY OF
VIRTUE
Ruth went
through many life trials for sure and even after leaving all she knew she got
into a situation of new culture and new people and the people were known to
despise her people.
That is tough
by any standard. But Ruth was a person who just sought God and did what she was
meant to do and her character got her noticed pretty similar to Rebekah and how
she met Abraham’s servant. Being a girl in a pastoralist’s family was not easy,
it was hard labor.
But you cannot
beat character no matter the situation.
I try to live
a life that speaks for me and my character. I try to be as authentic as
possible and be true to myself and to truthful with others.
I am also
very self-aware and will probably fight a wrong view of me but I have also
lived a life where people have given me so many opinions of what I should be
like that I almost lost myself once and was very unhappy. I only change when
god asks me to. I recommend you do the same.
LADY OF
DEVOTION
God created
woman to love Him and experience His blessedness of fellowship with Him.
I have come
to understand the important role I play as a woman in society and the influence
I have over others. Both fellow women and men as well. I have decided to use
the influence in a way that I help people see their need for God and get closer
to Him.
I have since
then developed a very strong emotion against negative vibes. I just do not like
it because it does not help.
That is how
simple I can define what I want to accomplish. I do it in various ways but my
ultimate goal is to let people know God loves them and all will be alright and
it will work out.
Jeremiah
29:12-13New King James Version (NKJV)
12 Then
you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And
you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all
your heart.
For me its
all or nothing, and it’s a serious commitment because I know Christ is fully
committed to me.
BLESSED EASTER EVERYONE
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