Times of Letting Go!

 

Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth clung to her….Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.”

Ruth 1:14, 16

Times of Letting Go

Ruth and her sister-in-law, Orpah, both lost their husbands. Their widowed mother-in-law, Naomi, was moving back to her hometown. She told Ruth and Orpah to return to their hometowns and find new husbands, that there was no future in staying with her. Orpah kissed Naomi and moved on. But Ruth refused to leave Naomi and was determined to care for Naomi in spite of what it might cost her. That tells me that if someone is supposed to stay with you, they’ll stick with you through thick and thin. You won’t be able to talk them into leaving. On the other hand, you can’t convince the people to stay who are supposed to leave. When God closes the door in a relationship, you can’t pay them enough, compliment them enough, or treat them good enough. You have to accept that it’s a necessary ending. You enjoyed the time together, but to become who you were created to be, you have to let them go so you can move forward into new relationships, new opportunities, new growth. Trust Him when you don’t understand.

A Prayer for Today

“Father, thank You that You are directing my steps even through the seasons of hurts, questions, and disappointments. Thank You that You bring people into my life and at times You move them out. Help me learn to accept Your sovereign plan, to stay in faith, and to see Your plan unfold. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”