A gleaner like Ruth

“So Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field, and glean heads for grain after him in whose sight I may find favour.” Ruth 2:2

The commandment of gleaning reflects God’s desire for His children to create opportunities for the poor and marginalized not to fall at the wayside and perish, but to be productive and contribute to their well-being. Gleaning is not charity. Gleaning is hard work. Imagine yourself walking in a field, the heat of the sun relentlessly beating down on you, the blisters on your feet and your back beginning to ache because you are bowed down the entire time to sift through the sheaf droppings of the harvesters to find the little morsels of grain. Ruth did not go looking for charity. Ruth was willing to do the laborious act of gleaning for her Naomi.

Gleaning, however, has a deeper spiritual meaning too. When we put in the work to study the Word of God, to look for the little seeds, we glean from His Word too, acquiring provision for our spiritual nourishment. Gleaning, as described in the Merriam Webster dictionary is to get, draw, take and to scrape together. It’s an important concept we, as the Body of Christ, should take to heart and remember each time we open the Word of God, and truly look for the seeds, we are gleaning from His nourishment.

Ruth Relationship Advice: Be prepared to glean God’s Word and the fields He puts you in to find His nourishment by being productive.

Prayer: Father, I choose to be a gleaner of your Word and in the fields, You guide me. Thank You for the seeds I can collect, whether it be physical or spiritual nourishment from Your Word. I want to be known as a hard worker, a gleaner like Ruth, for Your Kingdom. Amen.

Written by Pastor Iriza for

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