Your Life Has Significance – Please Believe Me!

You just don’t know. That’s something that I’ve been saying today. Each of really just don’t know why we are here. Could it be because it’s not about ME and it’s not about NOW. What if the significance of my life and yours does not lie in our lifetime but will come out in the generations that come from us? For those of us who are parents, it could mean one of the generations in the decades or even centuries to come could turn out to be our life’s miracle. For those who are not parents, it could mean that the work we have done, the love we have spread, the influence we have had on those around may only find true completion in the years ahead.

We are so quick to judge ourselves as insignificant or as a failure. It could not be further from the truth. This seed of thought was first planted in my mind by my brother, Julian. He once said something like, ‘perhaps it’s not about what we do here on earth that gives our life meaning, but it’s something that the next generation or the next or the next will do in their lifetime’. I never forgot that.

This morning it came to mind even more clearly through Andy Stanley relating the story of Ruth in the Old Testament. She had no idea that she would be instrumental in not only the line of King David, but also in the line of the future Saviour of the World – the Lord Jesus Christ. If there were just two words for me to describe Ruth, they would be humble and obedient. Through her humility and obedience, she did what was right. She married Boaz and together they had Obed, who was the father of Jesse. Jesse’s youngest son became King David.

The book of Ruth always makes me warm and fuzzy. Such a wonderful love story. But it must have been extremely difficult for Ruth. She was a young widow. She was poor and an outcast in the land of her late husband’s ancestors. She had nothing to recommend her. Day by day, she went to the fields, gleaning the farmer’s leftovers.

In our modern day, she may have been one of the bin pickers – we see them on the days the trash is taken out. Bending over the wheelie bins, they pick through the trash, looking for leftovers. We squirm and wish them away, yet, yet maybe just, among them, is a Ruth who may be responsible for the line of a mighty man of God.

It could not have been easy for Ruth. A close up view of her broken heart may have revealed daily tears, uncertainty, hopelessness and fear. What if she had been overwhelmed with depression and decided life was no longer worth living. Overcome, she ended it all. But she did not. She lived, she persevered. She obeyed her mother-in-law, Naomi and she ended up marrying Boaz and giving birth to the ancestors of Jesus. At the time, she never knew. All she knew was that God had blessed her with a husband, a home and children. She was content in that. Her mother-in-law held Obed, marvelling that what was a bitter life now contained such joy.

Ruth 4:16-17

Then Naomi took the child and laid him in her lap, and became his nurse. The neighbour women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

Naomi would die. Boaz would too. Ruth would follow, only seeing from their eternal home their great-grandson becoming King of Israel.

Please believe me when I say, your life has significance. You may not see it today, or tomorrow, or even on the day you die, but the significance is there. Our lives are inextricably tied to an unknown future. The words we speak, the kindness we show, the love we extend to others – they all have impact – we will only know the significance when we move from this life to the next.

So! Enjoy today. Spread the love that God has put in your heart. Trust Jesus for each moment of each day. Whether your life be short or long, know that it is not about here and not about now. We stand suspended in a moment of time. Let’s make the most of it, knowing the best is yet to come.

Keep the smile going.

God bless you!

In His Grip,

Helga xx