Here for You

​We live in a society littered with broken promises - from marriages to politics. Where promises are broken , trust is broken. We cannot trust if people are not trustworthy. Somebody once asked how the Devil might make it difficult for people to trust God. Answer: by making sure that this generation felt let down by the people closest to them. Result: a cynical generation who cannot trust. That is why the story of Ruth and Naomi holds such attraction for our society. A young widow promises her widowed mother-in-law that she will stick by her as she returns to her homeland. Young Ruth belonged to a different ethnic group, but she was prepared to make that cross-cultural migration to stick by Naomi: Where you go I will go and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you  die I will die and there will I be buried. May the Lord deal ever so  severely with me, if anything but death separates you and me. (Ruth 1:16, 17) Imagine the difference it would make to marriages, families, business and political projects if we could be sure of that kind of cast-iron commitment from our partners and colleagues. Behind that promise lies the revelation of both old and new testaments that God is a promise-making and promise-keeping God. We have been made in the image of this God and live secure lives when our communities reflect that distinctive feature of total trustworthiness. The theological term is covenant - a covenant community held together by the God of the covenant, and living out the reality of covenant commitments. Our readings and prayers for this month, help us to consider how this understanding might affect all our relationship with God and with others, be they friend or stranger. After all, technically, Ruth was an outsider to the covenant community, and yet displays the heart of the covenant-making God.