So Naomi returned from Moab accompanied by Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, arriving in Bethlehem as the barley harvest was beginning.
-Ruth 1:22

“Inconvenient” is an understatement.

Here’s what happened to Ruth:

She was from Moab and met her Israelite husband there. His family had moved there when a famine hit their hometown of Bethlehem (before it was famous).

All the men in the family died. It was just Ruth, her sister-in-law Orpah, and her mother-in-law, Naomi.

Naomi was old, and deeply affected by all this loss. She planned to head back to Bethlehem, and told the two Moabite women to stay put, that they should not suffer as she did. Reluctantly, Orpah went back to Moab.

But Ruth said this: “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 1:16b)

I don’t know what kind of life she had planned to live, but it wasn’t that. She gave up everything she had, moved to a different country and devoted her life to caring for Naomi. Inconvenient? Downright devastating. She gave up her culture, her language, and her security—not for a career or a dream, but to care for someone else’s sorrow.

There must be a whole wing in Heaven for caretakers like Ruth. I’m frequently in awe of these folks. Of course, I pray for all the Naomi’s out there, but I wonder:

Who is caring for the caregiver?

Many caregivers take up this mantle of devotion as part of their life’s purpose–driving a loved one to doctor’s appointments, or bathing and feeding them, or finding special schools, or advocating for their needs. Or…

Who would deny them feelings of exasperation or exhaustion? Or even resentment. Still, despite the sacrifice, they just keep going.

How can we help the caregivers in our midst?

Enter Boaz.

Boaz has heard about Ruth’s gracious decision to stay with Naomi. He invites Ruth to glean his fields. He gives her rest when she is weary. He praises her:

“I’ve been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband—how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before.  May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”
-Ruth 2:11-12

Boaz sees her and responds. Eventually, Boaz gives her lots more than some wheat. He gives her a son. In fact, this foreigner Ruth, who left all to care for her mother-in-law, becomes the great-grandmother of none other than King David.

Caregivers need people who will recognize their sacrifice and acknowledge their faithfulness. They need people who can provide them rest when they are weary, and small acts of kindness that convey love.

If you are a Ruth-type, bless you bless you bless you. It can’t always be easy, but loving someone in this way can also feel like a privilege. I hope that, much of the time, that’s how you feel.

But my wish is that you never feel alone in your work. May you be surrounded by Boaz-types who see you, and care for you, and show you love just as you have shown it to someone who desperately needs it.

I can’t guarantee your descendants will become royalty…

but someday you’ll exchange the cross

you courageously bear

for a crown.

Have a great week,

Mitch