Nothing Just Happens

Nothing Just Happens

Ruth 1; 6,18

6: Then she arose with her daughters in law, that she might

return from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the country of

Moab how that the LORD had visited his people in giving them bread.

7: Wherefore she went forth out of the place where she was, and

her two daughters in law with her; and they went on the way to return

unto the land of Judah.

8: And Naomi said unto her two daughters in law, Go, return each

to her mother’s house: the LORD deal kindly with you, as ye have dealt

with the dead, and with me.

9: The LORD grant you that ye may find rest, each of you in the

house of her husband. Then she kissed them; and they lifted up their

voice, and wept.

10: And they said unto her, Surely we will return with thee unto

thy people.

11: And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go with

me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your

husbands?

12: Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to

have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have an

husband also to night, and should also bear sons;

13: Would ye tarry for them till they were grown? would ye stay

for them from having husbands? nay, my daughters; for it grieveth me

much for your sakes that the hand of the LORD is gone out against me.

14: And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah

kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her.

15: And she said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her

people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law.

16: And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return

from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where

thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God

my God:

17: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the

LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.

18: When she saw that she was stedfastly minded to go with her,

then she left speaking unto her.

"Three women - Naomi, who is the older woman, and Ruth, who was her daughter-in-law, and Orpah, who was her other daughter-in-law.

Three women who’s commonality was pain,,, Pain is a strange company keeper,,, It,,, It brings the oddest people ,,, together.

There is a secret fraternity that exists amongst those who have been in pain that,,,that is mind-boggling,,, It transcends the color of your skin.... It transcends your background.... When you have been through certain things, you feel for other people who have been through those things, because you ,,,you, can relate to them.

I myself,,, personally don’t like to have a whole lot to do with people who have not been through pain,,, It’s,,, It’s nothing against them, I’m not jealous of them, I just can’t relate to them... I can’t relate to them ,,, and I am sure that they will not be able to relate to me....

The parts of me that I need to have known,,, that I need to have touched,,,, that I need to have fellowship,,,, are tied up not in the successes of my life,,,, but in the struggles of my life...

For God has done more through my struggles,,,

Uhh,,,uhh,,, He’s done more through my struggles then he’s ever done through my successes,,, And if you look carefully,,, at my successes,,, my successes are made out of the ingredients of my struggles.....

And you can never know my successes until you understand my struggles,,,because,,, because my struggles are the pathway that led me into my success.... (Are you hearing what I’m saying?)

And so if you are going to fellowship with somebody,,, you have to choose your friends and make sure that they’ve had something to die in their life,,, If you’ve never had anything to die in your life, you have the kind of optimism that is annoying....

If you’ve never had anything to go wrong in your life, I don’t like to hear you preach, it aggravates me, it gets on my nerves because your preaching has not been balanced by failure...

If you’ve never had anything to die in your life don’t counsel me, because you really don’t understand me because you don’t know why I am like I am,,, until you’ve been where I’ve been,,,you can’t go where i’m going,,,

If you’ve never had anything to die in your life don’t sit there and tell me be a man, take it, don’t cry. You don’t know what I’m taking, you don’t know what I’m enduring, you don’t understand...