{"id":111556,"date":"2023-04-13T13:29:30","date_gmt":"2023-04-13T17:29:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/discovergrace.com\/?p=109192"},"modified":"2023-09-19T15:51:17","modified_gmt":"2023-09-19T19:51:17","slug":"god-of-the-mundane","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/discovergrace.com\/god-of-the-mundane\/","title":{"rendered":"God of the Mundane"},"content":{"rendered":"

Over the past few years I\u2019ve cheered as many friends start new businesses, join ministries, or change careers now that their families are grown. Their new endeavors have spurred me to realize that I could make a big change as well. However, whenever I have considered a new beginning, I end up realizing that I really love what I do and the flexibility it affords me.\u00a0 At least for now, I\u2019m where I need to be: just keeping on.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Although I have great peace and contentment, there are moments when I feel a bit\u2026mundane. It usually happens after discussing a friend\u2019s new adventure or success. There is often a long pause before she invariably asks, \u201cHow about you? <\/span>Are you still teaching?<\/span><\/i>\u201d\u00a0 In those moments I feel a sort of guilt, something akin to what one feels when the TV screen goes black except for Netflix\u2019s lightly-veiled accusation: \u201cAre you <\/span>still<\/span><\/i> watching____?\u201d\u00a0 The completely innocent question of my friend makes me wonder if maybe I should be doing more with my life.<\/span><\/p>\n

Reading with a New Perspective<\/span><\/h1>\n

This was my frame of mind as I started re-reading the book of Ruth recently. Ruth is famous for being the great-grandmother of King David, and her story gives outsiders hope that even \u201ccursed\u201d people can come into the family of God.\u00a0 Not only that, but she is one of only two women whose names title a book of the Bible. However, here\u2019s something I\u2019ve never thought about before: As notable as she is, Ruth\u2019s story would not have been possible apart from the lives of two other characters: Naomi and Boaz.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Naomi: More than a Bitter Woman<\/span><\/h1>\n

By the time we meet her in the book of Ruth, Naomi feels that the Lord has abandoned her, but she was more than just a bitter old woman.\u00a0 Look at her relationship with Ruth. Typically Israelites were commanded <\/span>not<\/span><\/i> to marry foreigners, and yet Naomi\u2019s son did just that when he married Ruth. A foreign spouse could (and often did) turn an Israelite to false gods and away from true worship. In Ruth\u2019s case, however, it was the other way around.\u00a0 This Moabitess turned to worship the God of her husband\u2019s family. She chose true worship. Furthermore, since she opted to remain with her mother-in-law even after her husband\u2019s death, I can\u2019t help but wonder if it was something about Naomi that wooed Ruth to the God of Israel. Ruth undoubtedly witnessed something in Naomi\u2019s life that prompted her to leave her homeland, promising her mother-in-law, \u201cYour people will be my people and your God my God.\u201d\u00a0 It seems to me that even as Naomi was bubbling over in lament, she was a mentor and friend to Ruth.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ruth: More than an Immigrant<\/span><\/h1>\n

In return, Ruth was a faithful disciple and loyal companion. No doubt from Naomi\u2019s instruction, Ruth was familiar with the Israelite laws and customs.\u00a0 Knowing that as a widow and a foreigner she had the right to follow after harvesters and gather the grain they left behind, she woke every day and did the hard, physical work of providing for herself and Naomi. Because she was willing to humble herself, work hard, and trust God, Ruth met Boaz. Her work ethic and faithful devotion to Naomi won Boaz\u2019s affections despite the fact that she was an impoverished foreigner. In faithfully living out Naomi\u2019s teaching and actively trusting her God, Ruth ended up being instrumental in redeeming not only Naomi\u2019s family, but all of humanity.<\/span><\/p>\n

Boaz: More than an Eligible Bachelor<\/span><\/h1>\n

And let\u2019s not forget Boaz. He was so much more than an eligible Israelite bachelor.\u00a0 The Scriptures say he was wealthy, but we see in his actions that he was also generous, humble, and faithful to the laws of Israel. He not only allowed gleaning in his fields as the law commanded, he instructed his workers to leave <\/span>extra<\/span><\/i> grain behind for those who needed it. Once he met Ruth, he could have used his position and power to exploit her, but instead he used it to protect her, forbidding the men who worked for him from harassing her in any way.\u00a0 Not only that, but acting as kinsman redeemer for Naomi by marrying Ruth came at a great personal cost to Boaz. Indeed, a closer relative gave up redeeming Naomi\u2019s property because of risk to his own estate.\u00a0 In marrying Ruth, Boaz therefore must have faced a similar risk. <\/span>
\n<\/span>But he knew it was the right thing to do.<\/span><\/p>\n

Boring Heroism<\/span><\/h1>\n

Ultimately, the lives of the three characters intertwined to result in something pretty monumental: the family line of the Messiah. Where would we be without them?\u00a0 But here\u2019s what I have been realizing:\u00a0 Although all three could be considered heroes of the Bible, they probably didn\u2019t <\/span>feel <\/span><\/i>very heroic as they were living out their days. In fact, if you read through the book of Ruth, you may notice that the Lord never once speaks to any of them.\u00a0 God never called them to a specific course of action. They were just living out their faith in mostly boring daily routines. They were simply following Yaweh without any idea what the Lord was working out behind the scenes. And they most likely <\/span>never knew <\/span><\/i>the part their mundane lives played in the redemption of mankind.<\/span><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know about you, but I find great comfort in realizing that one of my heroes had a rather humdrum existence. It awakens me to the truth that God is not only a God who speaks and brings about huge miracles by empowering His people to do amazing things.\u00a0 He\u2019s also a God who works behind the scenes knitting together the mundane, invisible acts of His not-so-spectacular followers as they endeavor to seek Him and live faithfully.<\/span><\/p>\n

Maybe, like me, you are in a season of life that feels drab or invisible. Whether you are an empty-nester leaving behind the season of raising kids, a single person working long hours to provide for yourself, a stay-at-home parent whose most heroic acts seem to be changing diapers and keeping \u201cthe littles\u201d alive, or a working parent attempting to juggle the dual demands of work and family, take comfort in this: God sees you.\u00a0 He is at work even in your mundane, and you have <\/span>no idea <\/span><\/i>what miracles or movements He is weaving from your everyday boring acts of faithfulness.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To learn more about the book of Ruth, <\/span><\/i>join us<\/span><\/i><\/a> for Finding Hope, a 7-week series at Grace. Already part of Grace? Take your next step <\/span><\/i>here<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Over the past few years I\u2019ve cheered as many friends start new businesses, join ministries, or change careers now that their families are grown. Their new endeavors have spurred me…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":111590,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,97,46,106,38],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-111556","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-christian-life","8":"category-gospel","9":"category-magazine","10":"category-spiritual-growth","11":"category-theology"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGod of the Mundane - Grace Church<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/discovergrace.com\/god-of-the-mundane\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"God of the Mundane - Grace Church\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Over the past few years I\u2019ve cheered as many friends start new businesses, join ministries, or change careers now that their families are grown. 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