Fidelity

Ruth said, “Do not ask me to abandon or forsake you! For wherever you go, I will go, wherever you lodge I will lodge, your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” Ruth 1:16-17

Ruth's love for her mother in law reminds us of Jesus' love for us. Unable to leave us behind, the Lord promises to go before us to prepare a place for us so that where he is we too might be. That the scriptures help us understand God's love through the love of a woman for her mother in law should not surprise us. Anything and anyone can help us understand and appreciate the mystery of God's love if only we open ourselves to it.

Every year in Northeast United States as I watch the leaves fall from the trees, the days get shorter, I wonder how I will know God's love in the winter and if the Spring will bring new growth. Though the appearance of nature may shift and change as the days grow short, God, even when he appears to be hiding, endures. Like Ruth loving her mother in law, God walks with us through every darkness and promises to guide us even when we can't see where we are going.

At other times, it is the women and men who are always around our parish churches who remind us of God's fidelity. The church seems magically to open every morning, the altar is prepared for the Eucharist even before the priest enters the church, and coffee is made Sunday after Sunday because so many of God's faithful servants complete the everyday tasks without notice or accolades. How fortunate we are to have them.

Today, be grateful for God's faithful service of all.

What events and people help you to appreciate God's everyday fidelity?