I noticed a few cool things this morning in the One Year Bible reading in the book of Ruth. Naomi tells Ruth to go and lay at the feet of Boaz, their family redeemer, and then he will tell her what to do. In other words, she gave him authority to speak into her life by sitting at his feet--the position of a servant. Then he was able to give her instructions and provide a strategy for her to win. She put herself in a position to win. Humility makes us a winner!
Too often, we will not position ourselves to win because we think we have to know all the answers and have the plan. Ruth had neither, but by positioning herself as a servant she got the plan and the answers. God wants us all to win and Jesus modeled the life of a winner--it looks like a servant. Someone said it well at the ARC All Access Conference last week: "We are not leaders who serve. We are servants who have been given the opportunity to lead." Increase your influence this week by finding people to serve.
Increase your success by giving authority to the right people. Ruth doesn't just go and lay at anyone's feet, she is at the feet of a man who has proven he is a safe place. Many times we give authority to the wrong people and get burned. That's why it's called "disillusioned"--we were putting our confidence in an illusion. Ruth was putting her confidence in something real and tangible--someone who could be trusted with her life.
Boaz had earned that trust because he was a gentleman. Don't see enough of that these days. Boaz doesn't know Ruth, but sees her working in his fields trying to scratch out a living. He goes out of his way to show kindness to her, treating her with dignity and respect. In the end Boaz the gentleman gets the girl. Looks like kindness, gentleness, and servanthood are the ticket.
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Together, we are living the Winner's Life as we learn to love, serve, reach, grow and connect. So whether you're a spiritual seeker starting to ask questions about God, or a committed Christian looking to sink your faith roots even deeper, you'll feel at home at The Church at Mirror Lake.
If you believe Jesus really meant it when He said, "I came so people can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of," (John 10:10 Message Translation) then join us this weekend at one of our Jesus Celebrations. Until then, browse our website (a link is on the right of this page) where you'll find lots of helpful info and feel free to download one of our service messages or subscribe to our weekly podcast where you will receive the fresh, life-giving Word of God.
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WOW - this makes me wanna go rub my husbands feet! Very Nice PT - this is great stuff for Sunday's message too...I'm excited...CAML ROCKS.
ReplyDeleteWAIT - THat was from Matt's wife...Abi..matt has a gmail account..man, I'm not so good at this comment stuff.
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