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MSBC Media PlayerMedia Center
MSBCOC | Christian Youth
Freinds
The Story of Ruth
FRIENDS are something we all have.
Some of us have a lot and some a little. There some friends
who are closer to us than others. There are friends we talk
with at lunch, some we go over homework with and some we ride
the bus home together with.
When I think about friends, I think about one of the books in the Bible, Ruth. The book of Ruth tells about a really good friendship between Ruth and her mother-in-law, Naomi.
The story of Ruth tells us that when Ruth's husband died, her mother-in-law told her and her sister to go back to their own homeland. Although neither of them wanted to, her sister did go. No matter what Naomi said to Ruth she would not leave her. "Don't ask me to leave. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your friends will be my friends and your God will be my God."
So, together Ruth and Naomi returned to Bethlehem. It was a good thing Ruth went with Naomi because Bethlehem was very far away and Naomi would not have been able to travel all that way by herself. Notice that Ruth never complained but was a good friend to Naomi. She was not expecting anything in return. She just wanted to help.
When they arrived in Bethlehem, Ruth decided that she should do some kind of work. Since it was harvest time, she worked in the fields following behind the harvesters. She picked up any barley that they had dropped.
The owner of the field came by to greet the harvesters and noticed Ruth in the field. He asked one of the harvesters who she was. "She came back from Moab with Naomi, that's all I know." Lucky for Ruth the owner of the field was Boaz, he was a kind man who believed in God. He had also been related to Elimelech (Naomi's husband who died.)
When Boaz talked to Ruth, he said, "Don't go work in any other field but stay here with the other servant girls. I will make sure you are safe and whenever you are thirsty go and get a drink from the water jars." When Ruth heard this she bowed down to Boaz and asked, "Why are you being so nice to me, I'm not even from here."
Boaz replied, "I know what you've done for Naomi, you left your family and moved to a place you've never been. May the Lord reward you for your kindness."
Ruth thanked Boaz and continued with her work in the hot sun. Boaz even ordered his workers to drop extra barley so Ruth could have more for herself.
Ruth took all the barley home and shared what she had with Naomi , and eventually Ruth married Boaz and everyone was very happy!
Knowing how to be a good friend takes a long time to learn. A good friend is loyal, which means you keep your promises and sometimes when you don't feel like being a friend you are one anyway. Sometimes our friends aren't perfect and they make mistakes but we make mistakes too, we don't want our friends to leave us when that happens.
God gives us friends when we need them, and we should treat then as a gift from God. Just like in the story. Naomi could've insisted the women come with her, but she unselfishly wanted them to be free and go with their families. Ruth also wanted to help Naomi so she moved away from everyone she knew and went to work to help, all while having a good attitude about it. She didn't remind everyone what a good friend she was, she knew that she should be a friend like God wanted her to be.
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