From the Heart : Guest Post: "A Happy Ending" by Karen Gaul

Truths from the Word gleaned by a Biblical Counselor friend of mine in Stratford, Ontario. Thank you so much for putting these words out there on the internet... they are echoed in my life experience because of His grace, and I am in awe of the God who works for His good in ways beyond my comprehension (Romans 8:28,29). His goodness and sovereign wisdom is AWESOME, and so I walk in faith and not by sight... as I see you do well Karen Gaul! To Him be the glory both now and forever!!! Karen's original post along with lots of other biblical insights can be found at; gracebiblicalcounselling.net

A Happy Ending

We all love happy endings. Watch a movie and we hope it ends well, the same goes for books we read. We would like to have that written into our stories too, but it doesn’t always turn out that way. We want to know that if we do the right things that we can ensure our own happy endings, but again it doesn’t always work out that way.

I have been slowly teaching my way through the book of Ruth and we have finally made it to the last chapter. Boaz does the right thing and is interceding for Ruth and Naomi. He is willing to be the Kinsman Redeemer if Mr. So and So is not willing, which is how it turns out. The elders at the gate bless him abundantly and off he goes to find his bride. In one verse (verse 13) he goes to her, they marry, they are intimate, she conceives and has a son. How is that for a happy ending?

What can we take from that? Is it realistic to assume that if we are honourable, if we work hard, if we have integrity, if we have a good work ethic, if we love God that God will give us a spouse and a child? Or that He will give us whatever else we many long for? It would seem so from this passage.

Ruth was a God-fearing woman. She came to love the God of Israel. She looked after her mother-in-law without expecting anything in return. She was happy just to be where she was and with the people she was with. She was a hard and conscientious worker. She was a humble woman, a woman of valor.

Boaz was also a God-fearing man. He didn’t follow the trend of the day to “do right in your own eyes”, instead he was a man of kindness, integrity, honesty, faithfulness, gentleness. He was a loyal man, and a good and upright business man. He also knew Levirate law, and he knew when Ruth came to him that he was not the first in line to marry her. Even though he made it clear he wanted to do just that, his integrity lead the way and off he went to the city gate to give opportunity to the nearer kinsman.

God honoured who they were, and made a way for them to marry and then to conceive. God was pleased with who they were and how they conducted their lives. God had plans for them, and one of those plans was to have children to keep the line of Mahlon alive.

Remember that Ruth had been married for 10 years and had not conceived. It is also clear to me then that God is the one who opens and closes the womb, when and if he so chooses. Why he didn’t open it when she was married to Mahlon is not clear to me, but I trust in the wisdom and sovereignty of God to always do the right thing at the right time for the right purpose.

Is there a principal I can take from this passage? I think there is, but not the obvious one. The obvious one is this…”If I am obedient then God will…..” “ that if I do the right thing I too can have a happy ending”. That leaves us with a works righteousness kind of thinking and is very dangerous. It also nullifies the Gospel message that we are saved by grace not by works (Eph. 2:8,9).

It then would mean that if I didn’t have children (and I didn’t) it was because I wasn’t obedient enough, or have enough integrity and maybe that I wasn’t gentle enough. That puts a lot of pressure on me, pressure that I am not meant to pick up. And is simply not biblical truth.

How often do you pick that up though… When “bad” things happen, sickness comes a knocking, suffering waltzes through the side door unexpected, the pink slip arrives at a really bad time in your life… (you add to this list) what is one of the first things you think about? What did I do wrong? What did I do to deserve this? What can I do to fix this? We are convinced that if we pray enough, have enough faith, do the right things long enough with the right attitude then God will bypass us with “bad” things and we can be ensured we have a happy ending.

Where do we get that from? I do believe that is a world philosophy and some prosperity message, but it certainly doesn’t ring true from God’s word. He never promises that if I do the right things I will receive a happy ending and bypass any further suffering. We can look at the life of Elijah. He did a lot of really right things and yet he didn’t get the result he thought would happen and so he got depressed and wanted to die. What about any of the apostles? They did a lot of right things…preaching, teaching, proclaiming the Gospel message, building churches and their living here wasn’t so good.

Our life is laid out before the foundation of the world (Psalm 139). God has plans for each of us that are unique to each of us. He knows what roads He wants us to travel on to get to where He wants to get us.

The correct principal we can take from this passage is that joy and blessing will come as we pursue God, just not always in the way we think or want and not because we have done any right or wrong thing, but if we relinquish our wants and desires and wills God will bless us abundantly with joy unspeakable, faith unshakeable and love unmovable. He will bless us with a holy confidence in who we are as His children. We will find peace in knowing that through the storm He carries us, holds us close and infuses us with His grace and mercy and power.

Sorrow may last for the night but joy comes in the morning.

It becomes about yielding our lives to the One who knows what He wants to do through us, and that will come through suffering and trials, we will have seasons of dark clouds and seasons of great warmth and sunshine. James reminds us that we can have joy in the midst of trials and struggles.

Now that is a happy ending.