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Entourage
Mark Stuart • December 22, 2023
This week we’re closing out a devotion series on the Book of Ruth.
The building where I attended middle school was recently demolished. I happened to drive by it during
our Thanksgiving visit to my hometown, and seeing it (or the remaining parts of it) one last time
generated a flood of memories. Going to middle school was a big deal to me, perhaps because I had an
elementary school teacher who made a big deal of the transition to get us prepared.
Going into sixth grade I attended an open house with my parents. While students toured the building in
groups, the principal spoke to the parents. Later my dad told me that the principal gave parents some
advice about paying close attention to your child’s friends because of how big an influence they would
be during this crucial stage of development. That I still remember this conversation over forty years later
speaks to the impact it had on me.
Fortunately for me, the crowd I fell in with was a group of good-natured doofuses which, if we’re being
honest about middle school boys, was a win. Friends are going to be influential in our lives, so it’s
important to find some who will do so in a positive way.
In Ruth chapter four we get a glimpse into Naomi’s friend circle, and my conclusion is that they were a
solid group…
Then the women said to Naomi, “Praise the Lord, who has not left you without a family redeemer
today. May his name become well known in Israel.” (Ruth 4:14 HCSB)
It would have been nice for these friends to show up and simply be supportive and celebrate this good
news, but they did more than that. They praised the Lord for the baby. The same Lord about whom
Naomi had said this:
“….No, my daughters, my life is much too bitter for you to share, because the Lord’s hand has turned
against me.” (Ruth 1:13 HCSB)
Do you have any friends who are prone to bitterness and complaining? Sometimes we wallow in
disappointment to seek attention and sympathy, like how pigs wallow in mud to seek relief from the
heat. If we’re not careful we can get enough layers of disappointment caked on that we’re barely
recognizable.
In the book of Ruth there is a lot we can learn from the named central figures, but these unnamed
women have a lesson for us too. If the tiniest of lights can transform a dark place, just maybe a small
encouragement can sweeten a bitter attitude.
By Mark Stuart
Mark is the husband of Laura, father of Shelby and Jacob, and father-in-law of Bailey.
One man was there who had been sick for 38 years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew he had already been there a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to get well?” “Sir,” the sick man answered, “I don’t have a man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I’m coming, someone goes down ahead of me.” (John 5:5-7) You may think it a bit odd that Jesus asked the man if he wanted to get well. But I think, as Jesus often did, He used this moment as an attention-grabber. For years, the sick man’s eyes had been totally focused on the pool of water – feeling that his only hope was in those stirring waters. When Jesus asked the question, I can just see the man’s head jerking around to see who on earth asked such a ridiculous question. And that was exactly what Jesus wanted – He wanted the man to focus on Him and not on that pool of water. Yet as the man looked into the face of Jesus, he still maintained a mental focus on that pool, as he explained he needed someone to help him get in the pool when the water was stirred – hoping Jesus was that helper. As he hopefully gazed at the face of Jesus, he heard an unexpected command come from the lips of this stranger: “Get up,” Jesus told him, “pick up your mat and walk!” Instantly the man got well, picked up his mat, and started to walk. (John 5:8-9) The strong voice of authority and the eyes of compassion in this stranger left no room for doubt or distrust. The man immediately did what he was commanded to do -- he got up, picked up his mat, and walked away from his old life. What has been your focus for far too long? Are you willing to focus your eyes on the One who sees you, the One who knows you, and the One who wants to do something amazing in and through you? Are you willing to leave behind the old way of life and let God do something new in you? … let us lay aside every hindrance and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. (Hebrews 12:1-2 CSB) By Judy Shrout
During the Vietnam Conflict, I was visiting a friend at Walter Reed Military Hospital when I was asked if I would be willing to visit one of the wards filled with severely injured Vietnam veterans. The enormous room had at least 10-15 beds on each side of a long walkway – around 30 patients in all. Their injuries were profound and yet their spirits were high! It was Christmas, and they were brothers in arms with the shared experience of war trauma. As I talked with the guys, they were yelling across the room at each other, teasing each other and laughing together – just like family. After my visit with our brave and wounded warriors, the Today Show camera crew came in to interview and film the guys for an upcoming Christmas special. A few days later when the special program aired, I couldn’t quit crying for those precious young men – knowing that the happiness and camaraderie in that ward would not last – that the cruel world would not welcome them home. The cruel world would spit on them, ignore them, and fail to care for them. The multitude of sick and injured lying around the pool at the Sheep Gate no doubt experienced that same kind of ostracizing. After a time, hopelessness would set in, so they put their hope in a pool they believed had special healing powers. Intermittent springs fed into the pool and caused the water to be disturbed, but some thought it was an angel stirring up the waters. Within these [colonnades] lay a large number of the sick—blind, lame, and paralyzed [waiting for the moving of the water, because an angel would go down into the pool from time to time and stir up the water]. (John 5:3-4) Although there were plenty of people around the pool that needed healing, Jesus focused His attention on one man. One man was there who had been sick for 38 years. When Jesus saw him… (John 5:5-6) One man. Was this the first time in a very long time that anyone had taken time to really look at this man? What did Jesus see in him? And what did the man see in the face of Jesus? Let’s take a moment to slow down and quit being overwhelmed by the multitude of hurting people in our world. Instead, let’s lock our eyes and our prayers on ONE person that needs the hope that we have in Jesus. Who is your one person? What do you see in that person? And what do they see in you? By Judy Shrout
After this, a Jewish festival took place, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. By the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem there is a pool, called Bethesda in Hebrew, which has five colonnades. Within these lay a large number of the sick—blind, lame, and paralyzed… (John 5:1-3 NKJV) We don’t know the specific festival Jesus was attending in Jerusalem, but it was probably Passover, Pentecost, or the Feast of Tabernacles. These Jewish religious festivals were celebrations in remembrance of how God had provided for His people. Can you imagine the Son of God attending these festivals knowing that one day He would say these words, “This do in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19 NKJV)? As Jesus was making His way to the festival, he came to the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem -- a small entrance in the northeast corner of the city wall and probably the entrance used to bring in sheep for the temple sacrifice. I find it to be a rather tender moment as the Lamb of God walked into the city through the Sheep Gate – with no one around Him being aware that THIS Lamb would be the ultimate sacrifice. Although one might expect the area around the Sheep Gate to smell somewhat sheepy, that’s not the smell that permeated the air. Instead on this day, one would have noted the smell of sickness and disease – and the smell of hopelessness. Around this area, Jesus saw “a large number” of sick people lying around – some with diseases, some blind, lame, or paralyzed. Some had been there a very long time. The pool near the Sheep Gate was said to be red with minerals, so it might have had some medicinal value. The people lying around and tucked into those arched and probably covered porches may have held onto a teeny bit of hope just being near that pool. But when Jesus saw all those people crowded around that pool at the Sheep Gate, He no doubt saw sick and hurting sheep that needed a shepherd – people who needed healing and the hope only He could give. He saw not a mass of humanity, but individual people with real needs. When we encounter hurting people in our world, what do we see? Do we lump all the hurting people into a category – the homeless, the addicts, the mentally ill? If we are believers and Christ is in us, we need to step back and see others as He does – not lumping them into categories – but seeing each one as God’s special and unique creation – a person with a name. Do you see what He sees – people in need of hope and a Savior’s healing -- just like us? By Judy Shrout
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28) It was the summer of 2013 when I first heard the words, “There is something wrong with your baby’s heart.” I wasn’t sure how God could take this situation and bring something good from it. The future we had planned for now seemed so unknown, and my broken heart wept for my daughter’s broken heart. Thankfully, our broken hearts do not catch God off guard. During these times I must remind myself of God’s promises. One of my favorite verses I have kept close by over the past several years is Romans 8:28: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. The good things, the hard things, the unexpected things – all things work together for good when you love God. My family and I may have walked through a time we didn’t expect, but it was one filled with hope, faith, and a perspective on life that wouldn’t have come without going through a valley. Of course, I would never have wanted my daughter to endure the pain she has had to experience. But she is fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14), and I want her to look for God in all things and embrace the unique calling He has placed on her life. Friend, you may be walking through a season you didn’t expect, and you are wondering how God can bring good out of it. Please take comfort in knowing that God can heal broken hearts, turning them into masterpieces. He can ignite new hopes and dreams within us – ones that we didn’t know existed until our faith was held to the flame. Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the hope we have in You and Your Word. Thank You for letting us know that You can take any situation and bring good out of it. And one of the ways You do that is by drawing us closer to You in those seasons that seem unknown to us – but known by You. We love You, Lord. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen. By Lauren Hill
Food is awesome. Eating together creates community. It sustains us. It satisfies us. There has to be something really terrible or really great if we are going to forget or forgo eating. That is just not something people do. Therefore, the disciples were really confused when they came back to the well where they had left Jesus. They were bringing back food, but Jesus didn’t want to eat. After all, what was the point of sitting down at the well while everyone else went for food if not to take a rest and then eat? So… The disciples kept urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.” The disciples said to one another, “Could someone have brought him something to eat?” “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work,” Jesus told them. “Don’t you say, ‘There are still four more months, and then comes the harvest’? Listen to what I’m telling you: Open your eyes and look at the fields, because they are ready for harvest.” (John 4:31-35 CSB) Jesus, being fully human, knew hunger. He needed to eat just like the rest of us. But there was something far greater that filled Him at this point. Jesus, being fully Divine, knew what was happening when the Samaritan woman entered town. And it was delicious to His entire being. His food was to do the will of the Father. It was to fulfill His mission. His eyes were wide open, and He saw all who needed to be reconciled. We were given the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:11-21). But let’s be honest. When was the last time we were so excited to do God’s will and finish His work that we weren’t hungry? Today, listen to Jesus: open your eyes and look at the fields, because they are ready for harvest. By LaRaine Rice
The woman at the well has one of the best testimonies ever! And maybe, just maybe, that is why the whole town believed. After talking with Jesus, The woman left her water jar, went into town, and told the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” They left the town and made their way to him (John 4:28-30 CSB). She told everyone she could that Jesus told her everything she ever did. It was that simple. Jesus was clearly a prophet, a man of God. He knew EVERYTHING she had done. Yet, He didn’t condemn. He didn’t avoid her or treat her like an outcast. He sought her out, gently told her the truth and accepted her for who she was. This same Jesus continues to do the same today. He KNOWS us. He gently tells us where we are wrong – not to judge us but to help us. He LOVES us UNCONDITIONALLY. Dear one, if you feel judged, condemned and worthless, KNOW that is not from God. God’s enemy is seeking to keep you from Unconditional Love. Unconditional Love is Jesus. Child of God, you don’t need eloquent words to tell other people about Jesus. Follow the Woman at the Well’s example. Tell everyone that God knows all of your wrongs and shortcomings, that He loves you just as you are, and He loves them too. And maybe, just maybe, your town’s story will end the same as her town’s: Now many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of what the woman said when she testified, “He told me everything I ever did.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. Many more believed because of what he said. And they told the woman, “We no longer believe because of what you said, since we have heard for ourselves and know that this really is the Savior of the world.” (John 4:39-42) By LaRaine Rice
Lately, the worship service has been especially powerful and moving. It has truly been worship; and I don’t know about everyone else, but I can’t wait to go. Jesus spoke about such worship with the Samaritan woman in John 4: Jesus told her, “Believe me, woman, an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know. We worship what we do know, because salvation is from the Jews. But an hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth. Yes, the Father wants such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:21-24 CSB) Many, many people are worshipping in Spirit and in truth. It’s amazing. Sometimes, I just don’t want it to end. But it must. It must end -- and not just so there’s time for the offering or announcements. The reason it must end is well summarized in an early contemporary Christian song by Amy Grant. “I'd love to live on a mountain top fellowshipping with the Lord; I'd love to stand on a mountain top 'cause I love to feel my spirit soar. But I've got to come down from the mountain top to the people in the valley below; they'll never know that they can go to the mountain of the Lord. Now praising the Father is a good thing to do, to worship the Trinity in spirit and truth. But if we worshipped all of the time, well, there would be no one to lead the blind.” (from the 1977 album “Amy Grant”) You see, our times of corporate worship must end because everyone of us was made to worship God in Spirit and in truth. We leave our houses of worship to bring more with us the next week. Today, prayerfully consider who you can invite to worship with you. Bring them with you. Then, rejoice in and worship the Lord with reckless abandon not worrying about what your friend thinks. Mountain top living is better when there are others with you to enjoy the View! By LaRaine Rice
“How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” she asked him. For Jews do not associate with Samaritans. (John 4:9 CSB) Sometimes we look back on Biblical times as if they were the good old days. This verse alone, however, reminds us that people had a hard time getting along then just as they do today. It is very easy to not associate with people today. We unfollow, block and cancel those that don’t agree with us. If we don’t want to listen to them, we don’t have to. And if we want to tell everyone else how wrong they are, we hide behind our keyboard and post our opinions. So, how was it that Jesus, a Jew, asked a random Samaritan woman for a drink? Why did He choose to associate with her? Couldn’t this association cost Jesus His reputation so early in His ministry? Jesus answered, “If you knew the gift of God, and who is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would ask him, and he would give you living water.” (John 4:10) Simply put, Jesus was there to give her Living water; He was there to give Life. He saw her for who she was and initiated the conversation. The Kingdom of God was near, and He knew she belonged in the Kingdom. Why did He associate with her? She was worthy of God’s love and redemption. Why is it then, that we choose NOT to associate with others? Why do we choose to alienate others, even Christians? Why do we think that our political opinions and our beliefs deserve to be shared even if it hinders the Kingdom of God? Christ Follower, you are called to associate with everyone. You are called to share the Living Water with a thirsty world. You are meant to view everyone through Jesus’ eyes; all are worthy of God’s love and redemption. Today, ask God if you are alienating people or associating with people. By LaRaine Rice
There always seem to be monumental, insurmountable tasks in the movies. Soon, a hero will emerge with a plan and inspire people to face the challenge to carry it out. The hero may do most of the work but still needs others to reach their goal. Everyone follows the plan because they trust the planner. Jesus did not leave this world without a plan. Just before He ascended into heaven, He gave the 11 apostles and other followers directions: “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20 CSB) He even gave them some specifics, “ You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8 CSB). I wonder if John had these directions in mind when he penned the story of the lady at the well. You see, Jesus had just come from Jerusalem. As John 4 opens, the disciples are busy baptizing more disciples, and He leaves Judah. On the way to His destination, He went through Samaria. He stopped at the well and began to share the news that the Kingdom of God had arrived – sharing it with the first Samaritan that He met. From the beginning of His ministry, Jesus followed the same plan He would later give John and the other disciples. Perhaps, like me, you wonder if John shared the details of this story knowing that Jesus, the Planner, lived out the plan. Jesus laid out a plan for the disciples and for us to follow in the monumental, seemingly insurmountable task of telling the world about Him. Will you follow the plan and the Planner today? By LaRaine Rice
Seasonal Fruit Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. (Psalm 1:1-3) I’m so grateful that God’s Word is living and active. Though I’ve read this passage many times, something new captured my attention when it came up in my reading plan. It was the phrase “in its season” – referring to the bearing of fruit. As I read those words, and even now as I write, several inches of snow and ice have buried much of our state under a blanket of glistening white, forcing a halt to many activities and an abrupt shift for most of us into a slower gear. Nothing outside is bearing fruit at the moment. As believers with the Holy Spirit inside us, we are rightfully expected to bear fruit. It’s what identifies us as followers of Christ, and it’s the natural effect of abiding in Him. In the passage above, the psalmist is describing one who is blessed, walking in wisdom, delighting in and meditating on the law of God continually. He says this person is like a healthy tree planted near water. And yet, even in these ideal circumstances, the fruit comes in its season . There’s a cycle to it, and that’s by design. I see this pattern in my own life. When we joined a new church family, it was ages before I understood what my purpose was in that space. In deep suffering or trial, there were times when the most I could manage was to get out of bed and stumble through the day. What if those times of trial or hard waiting are like snow on top of the green? The promise is that He will bring the fruit in season , at the right time. What about you? Are you in a season of fruitfulness in your walk? Thank God for this! We should never take for granted the opportunity He gives us to participate in His kingdom work. But if your answer is no or you’re unsure, let me encourage you to continue to walk in faithfulness. Get up, be with God’s people, lean into His Word, ask Him for direction. He is faithful. Things are happening under the ground, even if there’s snow on top. Plant yourself by a stream of living water and trust Him… the fruit will come. By Lori Barkley Lori and her husband Jim attend the Armstrong Mill campus where she serves as a deacon. They have two daughters, Brynn and Katy.
