{"id":2890,"date":"2023-10-25T01:10:35","date_gmt":"2023-10-25T01:10:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/?p=2890"},"modified":"2023-09-30T16:19:00","modified_gmt":"2023-09-30T16:19:00","slug":"hard-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/hard-times\/","title":{"rendered":"Hard Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wednesday, October 25<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hard Times<\/strong><\/p>\n

We may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall.<\/em> Proverbs 16:33<\/strong><\/p>\n

Today’s verse reminds us that even in the seemingly random events of casting lots or making decisions, God’s sovereign hand is at play. A great example of God\u2019s providence is the story of Ruth. A woman who had lost her husband and now struggling to find scraps of food for her and her mother-in-law, Naomi. This chapter of her life was called, \u201cHard Times.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maybe you\u2019ve had a chapter like that yourself. Heck, maybe you\u2019re in your chapter titled \u2013 Hard Times it right now. This isn\u2019t how you imagined your life working out. This hardship doesn\u2019t align with your 10-year plan. You started the year off right, with each month checking off your 2023 goals and then life hits you like a sledgehammer. That must have been how Ruth felt too. She was grieving the loss of her husband, while caring for her mother-in-law who had not only lost her son, but her husband as well. All the men had died in their life. And back then a woman without a man to care for her was completely helpless and likely to starve.<\/p>\n

The dice had been thrown for Ruth, and it didn\u2019t look good. But, the Lord determines how they will fall. Decisions have been made, but God alone determines what happens. And what a difference it makes when God has the final say.<\/p>\n

Ruth 2:3, \u201cSo Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters. And she happened to find herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz, the relative of her father-in-law<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is God\u2019s divine providence. If you blink, you\u2019ll miss it. If you\u2019re focused on your problems, you will pass right by God\u2019s supernatural work in the natural. Ruth went out to gather leftover grain in the fields so she and her mother-in-law wouldn\u2019t starve. And she just \u201chappened\u201d to end up in the field of Boaz.<\/p>\n

Ruth didn’t realize it at the time, but this was the divine alignment of the dice, orchestrated by God Himself. It marked the most profound answer to her prayers, a pivotal step in a grand design for her life that would surpass all her expectations, thoughts, or imaginings.<\/p>\n

The field she casually found herself in was, in fact, a sacred stage for God’s unfolding blessings. It was here that Boaz, a man of integrity and wealth, would notice Ruth. This was the turning point for their destinies, where two individuals, united by their unfortunate and destitute circumstances, would ultimately become integral parts of the blessed lineage leading to the birth of Jesus.<\/p>\n

Ruth would be taken care of for the rest of her life. She would be loved by Boaz and blessed with children. Her name would be remembered forever. But first, there was extreme loss and hardship. There were uncertain and shaky steps on the journey. But she wasn\u2019t the one directing those steps. God was directing the steps. And one day, like Ruth, you will look back and see Romans 8:28 all over your life, \u201cAnd we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yes, even loss. Yes, even tragedy. Yes, even hardship and struggle. God can use it for good.<\/p>\n

Come back tomorrow as we look again at the Providence of God through the life of Joseph.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wednesday, October 25 Hard Times We may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall. Proverbs 16:33 Today’s verse reminds us that even in the seemingly random events of casting lots or making decisions, God’s sovereign hand is at play. A great example of God\u2019s providence is the story of Ruth. A woman […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2890","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2890","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2890"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2890\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2897,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2890\/revisions\/2897"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonecem.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}