WHAT IS TRUST?

WHAT IS TRUST?

Ruth 2:11-12

11 And Boaz answered and said unto her [Ruth], It hath fully been shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law since the death of thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore.

12 The Lord  recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the Lord  God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.

          There was something different about Ruth. Unlike her sister-in-law, Ruth refused to return to her family after the death of her husband. She begged Naomi to let her remain with her and to travel with her to Bethlehem. She committed her future and her very life to Naomi and to Naomi’s God. It’s a marvelous thing and we wonder why she did it.

          Boaz gives us a simple answer when he says that Ruth had “come to trust” in the God of Israel. This God was not the god of her youth or her upbringing. She had been a gentile but all that she had observed and experienced as the wife of a Jew had caused her to trust in the God of Israel. This is even more remarkable since she, her mother-in-law and her sister-in-law were all now widowed. In spite of all the difficult circumstances, she had placed herself under the sheltering wings of the God of Israel.

          Trust is gradually earned as faithfulness is observed and enjoyed. We seldom analyze why some people are our friends and others are not. True friends, with all their blemishes, are consistent. They are the same every time we are with them. They have shown interest in us; have been kind to us; enjoy our company and we enjoy theirs. We have “come to trust” them to help in time of trouble. We help them when they are in need. It is a relationship that grows with experience. Unfaithful and inconsistent friends are first treated with suspicion and finally discarded. We don’t trust them (see Proverbs 25:19).

          Trust prompts behavior that seems strange to those who do not trust! Ruth went out to collect daily bread that was dropped on the ground by the harvesters. This seems reasonable but Ruth also went out searching for her future. She “trusted” that God was going to bring in to her life someone who would transform her circumstances. She and Naomi had discussed this. They had probably prayed about this. Trust waits expectantly.

          Do you trust God? Have you observed His faithfulness? Has He been good to you in the past? Do you see Him blessing others who trust in Him? Trust is earned and then learned. Ultimately, it prompts a change in behavior that seems strange to those who do not trust.

“There was no need for Ruth to worry, for the wealthy lord of the harvest would care for her and Naomi. How did she know he would care for her? He gave her his promise, and she knew he could be trusted.”

-- Warren W. Wiersbe.

Dear Lord, all that I’ve ever observed tells me that you are trustworthy and faithful. I place my trust in you today. AMEN