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would we welcome Ruth?

Ruth 1:15-18 (JDV)

Ruth 1:15 Naomi said, “Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods. Follow your sister-in-law.”

Ruth 1:16 But Ruth replied: Don’t plead with me to abandon you or to return and not follow you, because wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.

Ruth 1:17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May Yahveh punish me, and do so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.

Ruth 1:18 When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped talking to her.

would we welcome Ruth?

Ruth had gotten to know her mother-in-law, Naomi, and Naomi’s God as well. She would not follow her sister back to the Moabite community with its pagan religion and culture. She was determined to attach herself to Naomi, her people, and her God. That is commitment, and all over the planet such people are doing the same thing Ruth did.

We Christians should be applauding that kind of courage and commitment, but often we let our own fears and prejudices get in the way. We should be welcoming foreigners to live as guests in our communities, but we often do everything but that.

Would we be at the borders of Israel welcoming Ruth, or trying to keep her out?

LORD, give us the courage to welcome foreigners into our communities, and the courage to share our faith with them.