In Ruth 1:16-18, we see a familiar passage read at weddings that goes like this:
But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.’ And when Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more." (ESV)
The interesting thing about this passage, often read at a wedding, is that it stops short of the section that says, “Where you will die I will die.” For obvious reasons, this part is left out, but should it not fit well into the, “Til death do us part,” or have we left that part out too? One of the facets of behavioral consistency that seems to be missing, misunderstood, or colloquially redefined in relationships is…Commitment! Abraham Lincoln once said, “Commitment is what transforms a promise into reality.”
This passage closes with an interesting insight, “And when she saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more.” Determination achieves goals and gives direction; all of which results from a foundational commitment that transforms a life. Perhaps we need a little more than an “I do” or an “I will.”Whether in a relationship or saying you will volunteer to serve in one of the many ministry areas at Calvary. Does your “I will,“ mean I will even when life gets difficult, as it did for Naomi, or does it mean “I will” if something else does not come up?
Determination and commitment…these words will define you, “For better or for worse…whether you are rich or poor…in sickness and in health.”
