JUNE 26, 2024
READ: Ruth 2 (Focus vs. 11-12 & 3:1-6)
MEMORY VERSE
“I’ve been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband.” Ruth 2:11
BACKGROUND
Years before Zoom was an accessible communication tool, a friend asked me to join her on a video call to discuss a project. Through the tone of my emails, she could tell I was baffled, so she suggested I find a teenager to help me figure out how to set up a video call.
Her suggestion points to the value of intergenerational relationships. It’s something observed in Ruth and Naomi’s story. Ruth is often celebrated for being a loyal daughter-in-law, deciding to leave her land to accompany Naomi back to Bethlehem (Ruth 1:16-17).
When they arrived in the town, the younger woman said to Naomi, “Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain [for us]” (2:2). She helped the older woman, who then helped the younger woman marry Boaz.
Naomi’s advice for Ruth prompted Boaz to take action in purchasing her deceased in-laws’ property and to take her “as [his] wife” (4:9-10).
We certainly respect the advice of those who share their seasoned wisdom with younger generations. But Ruth and Naomi remind us that the exchange can go both ways. There’s something to be learned from those younger than us as well as those who are older.
Let’s seek to develop loving and loyal intergenerational relationships. It will bless us and others and help us learn something we don’t know.
By: Katara Patton
INSIGHT
Boaz, Naomi’s relative (Ruth 2:1), noticed Ruth’s presence in his fields, inquired about her, and offered her protection (vv. 5-9). He praised her for her devotion to Naomi (2:11) and noted how she’d taken refuge under God’s wings (v. 12).
In Psalm 91, using a similar metaphor of a chick under the wings of its mother, the psalmist celebrates the security and safety found in God:
“The Lord . . . alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. . . . He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings” (vv. 2, 4 nlt). This endearing picture of God protecting those who take refuge in Him is also found in Psalms 17:8; 36:7; 57:1; 61:4; 63:7.
By: K. T. Sim
APPLICATION
What have you learned from someone younger? How might you reach out to someone of another generation today?
PR’s RE-EMPHASIS (From Post)
“There’s something to be learned from those younger than us as well as those who are older. Let’s seek to develop loving and loyal intergenerational relationships.”
PR’s (PASTOR RICHARD) TAKE
“An intergenerational friendship is like a bridge between different worlds, connecting generations with understanding and empathy.” Anonymous
Cross and Intergenerational friendships and relationships help to “strengthen and regenerate communities”. Adapted
PRAYER
“Dear God, thank You for the wisdom found in the young and in the old. Teach me to value intergenerational exchanges.”
TODAY’S HYMN/WORSHIP/PRAISE/GOSPEL SONG
“I NEED YOU TO SURVIVE” Hezekiah Walker
I need you, you need me
We’re all a part of God’s body
Stand with me, agree with me
We’re all a part of God’s body
It is His will that every need be supplied
You are important to me, I need you to survive
You are important to me, I need you to survive
Everybody look at somebody and tell them I need you
I need you (you need me), you need me
We’re all a part of God’s body…
I need you…you need me
…It is His will that every need be supplied
You are important to me
I need you to survive
You are important to me…
I pray for you
You pray for me
I I love you…
…I need you to survive
I won’t harm you with words from my mouth
I love you
I need you to survive
I pray for you
You pray for me
I need you to survive…
READING THROUGH THE BIBLE THIS YEAR (DAILY)
PROVERBS 1
