Often we get caught up in the headline news of the day, which can affect our whole outlook and mood. For months we’ve waited grimly for the daily announcement of Covid infection numbers or the roadmap out of lockdown. This week we may have tuned in the various messages coming from the world’s leaders and activists at the CoP26 climate conference in Glasgow that will affect the planet in important ways. But perhaps the biggest and brightest headline this week was the finding of missing 4 year old Cleo in Western Australia that brought a smile to many faces and hearts.
I’m sure that God is somehow involved in all these headline grabbing stories. But it’s important to remember that God is also involved in our ordinary everyday lives, if we have the eyes of faith to see it. Perhaps in the joy of children playing together, in the quiet catch-ups with friends or even in the routine of working in the garden or going for our daily stroll.
Amidst the headline grabbing OT books that speak of the exploits of towering figures like Moses, Samuel and David, there is the short story about Ruth and her mother-in-law Naomi. It’s unusual in the patriarchal biblical culture to have such a focus on the relationship between two women and their struggles and joys. But it’s refreshing that such a story was deemed important enough to include in our Bibles. It shows that God is concerned and involved with our everyday life and simple tasks like putting food on the table. God has no speaking lines in this story yet is present in nearly every scene. May this story encourage us to slow down and look out for where God is at work in our lives.