Looking Out For Others

Looking Out for Others

Naomi

Read: Ruth 1:8-13

The young mother mentally calculated the cost of the diapers and food in her cart to make sure that she had enough money. She noticed the older woman in front of her glance back at her again. Yes, I know I look like an awful mess, the young woman thought. Or was her fussy baby with an ear infection bothering the woman? A few minutes later, she walked out of the store, wishing she could thank the older woman who had paid for her groceries.

Naomi also cared deeply about the well-being of others. If Naomi hadn’t loved her daughters-in-law as her own children, Orpah and Ruth would not have decided to return to Israel with her. On the way, however, Naomi began to have second thoughts. Was it in the girls’ best interest to move to a country where Moabites were despised? Remarriage was their only chance for security, and the opportunities for that would be slim in Israel. Despite the comfort she received from their presence, Naomi urged Orpah and Ruth to return to the security of the familiar. She would make the long, dangerous journey alone in order to protect them.

This selfless attitude seems rare in our looking-out-for-number-one, dog-eat-dog world. Our me-first mentality is exposed by the shock expressed when someone returns lost money to its rightful owner or refuses pay for helping a stranded motorist. God wants us to rise above our self-centeredness to do what’s in the best interest of others. This often requires sacrifice on our part. Christ was the supreme example of this attitude when he died on the cross, because he was looking out for our interests rather than his. Whether we give up our desires, time, or material possessions, we won’t ever come close to what Christ gave up for us.

Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.

Philippians 2:4 (NKJV)