Mensa Otabil - Who is Going With You? (10/03/2025)
Our fifth question is: Who is going with you on the journey you are on? Who goes with you? Ruth, chapter 1, verse 16: "But Ruth said, 'Do not urge me to leave you or to turn back from following you. For wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.'" Ruth was a daughter-in-law of Naomi. Naomi and her husband had traveled to the land of Moab with their two sons, who married two girls in the land of Moab. Unfortunately, Naomi lost her husband and her two sons, so she now has her daughters-in-law, who have also lost their husbands. One of them is Ruth; the other one is called Orpah. Naomi decides to go back to the land of her ancestors, which is Bethlehem. In the process, Ruth makes the statement we read in the passage today—that she will stick with Naomi and stay with her and go with her. But the other daughter-in-law, Orpah, turned back and stayed with her people.
In life, there are people who stay with you, and there are people who leave you. It's part of life. Don't get angry about it; it's just the way things are designed to be. Not everybody is going to be with you, and not everybody is going to leave you. At every point in life, there will be a Ruth who stays with you and goes with you on your journey, and there will be an Orpah who looks at the situation and considers it too difficult to stay with you. So, in our relationships on the journey of life, we have to discern, and we need divine guidance to decide who is staying with us and who is leaving us. Those who stay with us build enduring relationships with us, and those who leave us are transitional. Sometimes they come to add something to your life and leave; that's all they're supposed to do—be there at a certain point and then move on with their lives. You shouldn't blame them or get angry with them.
There are people who stay with you through difficult moments and journey with you, and that is what Ruth represents. There are different qualities we should look for in the relationships we have, and it's important that when we find enduring relationships, we nurture them. We invest in them, and we don't give too much value to people who will leave us later. Instead, we should give much more value to those who stick with us at all times. For the journey that God has called you on, there are people whom God has appointed to stay with you, walk with you, counsel you, advise you, encourage you, and remain with you until the journey's end. Value those people and don't underestimate them.
Just a few things for you to think аbout: Remember those who helped you without expecting anything in return. There are people in life who helped you when they were not looking for a reward, maybe when you were nobody. Those are valued people; don't take them lightly. Honor the person who stood by your side when you felt tired and weak, when you couldn't stand on your own. Somebody stood with you and helped you to stand; honor that person. Express gratitude to those whose encouragement helped you get through a difficult phase of your life. There are people who encourage you, sometimes by giving you a gift, sometimes by making a call, sometimes just by being present and smiling. They help you, so cherish those whose words of advice or counsel enabled you to make wise choices. Remember to also be a helper to somebody else, as others have helped you. May God give you a Ruth who stays with you throughout your journey.
Let's pray. Say with me: "Heavenly Father, help me to recognize the people You have placed in my life to help me get to where I'm going, in Jesus' name. Amen and amen." I'm Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom—peace and life to you.