God restored the economy of Bethlehem
Just as God restored the economy of Bethlehem with bread to eat, let God restore the economy of the Nations in this Covid Lockdown… Ruth 1:6
🥖After numerous personal tragedies, Naomi decided to return to Bethlehem, which means ” House of Bread” when she heard that God had restored the Economic Situation of Bethlehem. Once again there was Bread in the Bakery, Ruth 1:6.
🥖Bread is a vital part of the daily diet in most household. We can survive with bread if there is nothing else. During this unprecedented lockdown, there were Bakeries that kept opened to provide free bread when there was no available food, in some places to sustain their community. There were the odd ones who cleaned out the breads from the shelves of the supermarkets for their own survival. The news of bread in her far homeland lifted up the dropping spirit of Naomi, that was almost dead within her, by her manifold afflictions.
🥖Naomi and family left Bethlehem for Moab. The famine situation took them from a Place of Fellowship to a Place of Convenience. They settled among the people they were forbidden to enter into a relationship even to the 10th Generation.. Deuteronomy 23:3.
🥖Naomi’s two daughters in law went with her when she to head towards Bethlehem, but Naomi had after thoughts about her daughters in law following her. She came the crossroad of decision making and encouraged both Orpah and Ruth to return home to their familiar surroundings as she didn’t want them to experience anymore misery, Ruth 1:8.
🥖They insisted on following but after much persuasion from Naomi, Orpah decided to kiss and return and Ruth decided to kiss and cling, Ruth 1:14-15. One kissed Naomi and went back to the past, another kissed Naomi and went forward into the future to find a place in the Genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:5
🥖Ruth, the Gentile, is a picture of us longing to go back to the Father after being away from Him. There is a hunger for eating the Bread of Life. Salvation that comes from the Jews was available to her and she clung to Naomi, a picture of Israel, until the end. It is either all the way to the Redeemer King or Return to Status Quo
🥖There is a great lesson to be learnt from Ruth 1:18, that is, The Determination for the things of God. To be Steadfast in Matters Regarding the Kingdom of God We face choices every day of our lives and these choices have consequences. We can Reclaim and be Redeemed but we also must Reject the Ways of the World
🥖Christian Walk is not an easy process and there are many pitfalls. God will assists each one of us in this daily struggle but it is largely up to us to be Determined. Before Redemption comes there must be a Separation of Good from Evil, of that, which must be Redeemed, from that, which must be Rejected and Abandoned.
🥖Dear Child of God, Orpah went where her Mind took her, Ruth went where her Heart took her. Ruth chose to come out and be separated from what she knew was a low level life, leaving behind the False Worship and Chose to come up to a higher level by putting her Faith in the Living God, the True God of Naomi. Naomi and Ruth who ate the Bread of Affliction was ready to eat the Bread of Bethlehem, the City that will Birth the Bread of Life, Jesus Our Saviour. And let us remember the scene is laid in Bethlehem, the City where our Redeemer was Born.
In this Lockdown the Good News of Jesus, the Bread of Life From Heaven should lift up every downhearted drooping spirit in our Community, so that, they will know that God has visited His People. God can certainly revive any Community with both the Physical and the Spiritual Bread We need to help those who are at the crossroad in this pandemic, not knowing where their next bread will come from.
Let us arise to be Decisively Determined to share the Spiritual Bread of Life, as well as the Physical Bread to eat to those around us, and pray for God’s visitation to turn the economy around….Amen
anniekoshy@God’s Thirstydeer🦌
Breaking the Chain with You….