Daily Devotional
God’s Refining Grace for Us
“Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, ‘Whose young woman is this?’”
Ruth 2:5
September 10, 2022
Ponder This
Samuel Rutherford, a man who knew suffering, has been quoted as saying, “Praise God for the hammer, the file, and the furnace.” Has it seemed like you’re a nail, and some hammer is coming out of nowhere, beating on you? Does it seem like you are a piece of metal, and there is some file that is gnawing and scraping and reducing you? Does it seem like you have been flung into a furnace and are being consumed? Remember that God holds the nail and the hammer. God holds the metal and the file. It is God who has allowed you to be in the furnace and watches over the furnace.
Ruth surely wondered, “Why this hammer? Why this file? Why this furnace of fire?” But if you back out and look at the bigger picture, you see that it was saving grace, it was sovereign grace, and it was God moving everything so that Ruth showed up just at the right time in the barley field when Boaz was there because God had a plan.
- When have you experienced suffering that felt like a hammer, file, or furnace?
- How does it encourage you to remember that God has a plan, even in difficult times?
Practice This
Journal today about a time during which you were able to see God’s plan in very difficult circumstances.
FOR YOUR GIFT TO THE MINISTRY
Front Porch Moments by Gayle Foster
WITH KEY INSIGHTS FROM HER FATHER, ADRIAN ROGERS
I try to unplug each morning with Jesus with just my rocking chair, my Bible, and a pen.
Having a secret place is very important because I know that Jesus is always there waiting for me. I know where I can find Him! His presence is everywhere, but there are places where it is so thick you can cut it with a knife. You may not even have a front porch, but there is a secret place for you as well. God’s invitations are for anyone who will respond. There is no more important request than the one found in Psalm 27:8: “My heart has heard You say, ‘Come and talk with Me.’ And my heart responds, ‘Lord, I am coming.’”
