Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth (Matthew 1:5)
In two days we read through the book of Ruth, a sweet and sentimental letter of a widowed daughter-in-law’s love and devotion to her widowed mother-in-law. Ruth agrees to follow Naomi, and for Naomi’s God to be her God. In itself, it’s a wonderful story of a family’s love, of God’s call and of a woman’s response. And nothing happens in isolation, and this story isn’t just a one-off filial love story.
Through Ruth’s journey and marriage to Boaz, she has a son who has a son, whose son is King David. Her little four chapter story is critical enough that she becomes one of a handful of women named in the lineage of Jesus at the beginning of the book of Matthew. If this little story hadn’t happened, Jesus’ lineage would be all messed up. Although I’m not a theorist, I think it’s an example of the chaos theory, where a butterfly beating its wings in the Amazon could create a tornado in Texas. Small things have big consequences that we don’t see, can’t understand and are can’t predict. Ruth’s little sweet story resulted in her name being written in the lineage of Jesus. Of course there were many unnamed women in the lineage, but Ruth is called out.
We don’t know what will come about from our actions, from our opportunities to say Yes to God’s call in both big and small ways. You never know where your kindness will land, or if it will ever land. Maybe it continues to be paid forward for generations. Already, I can see bits of my mon’s kindness in my kids, or my dad’s wit. And this includes two kids who aren’t blood relatives.
What about the kindness shown a stranger or a colleague? Or when you choose to stop at this store on your way home, or not? We never know. But I believe God sees all our actions, all our days, all our choices and things happen because of what we do. I hope today to act in ways that result in good things, good people, good descendants somewhere down the road.
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