Traveling Companions

Traveling Companions

Naomi And Ruth

Read: Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

“Forget it—I won’t take no for an answer. I’m going to drive you to every one of your chemo treatments.”

“But it’s forty miles each way. What about your job?”

“I’ve cleared it with my boss. I’ll make up the hours by doing some work at home.”

“What about your kids?”

“All set. Francine, next door, will come over whenever I need her. Meredith, I’ve already decided—I’m going to walk through this with you.”

Meredith opened her mouth, but no words came out.

“When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she said nothing more” (Ruth 1:18). Sometimes, it’s hard to speak when our hearts are full. Naomi urged Ruth to return to her own people because she thought this would be best for her daughter-in-law. How glad she must have been when Ruth vowed that she would go wherever Naomi went. The road back to Judah was long and hard, but what a comfort to be traveling with a friend. Ruth also accepted Naomi’s God as her own. However uncertain their future, the women would face it together, looking out for each other as they looked to God for guidance.

Busy women sometimes neglect to nurture their friendships with other women, especially when they’re caring for young children. But when hard times come, we need a friend to go through them with us. We need someone to help us carry our burdens when they get too heavy for us to manage alone. A sister in Christ can pray for us and help us keep our eyes on God. As we follow him together, we can help one another grow into the persons God created us to be. As we go through life, what a comfort to have traveling companions who share our burdens!

Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:2