Do you need another person to help you along your spiritual journey? Are you discouraged journeying by yourself? When I try to do to a difficult job by myself, I can become discouraged. Maybe you are the same way. I have noticed when I do a difficult job with someone, the job seems much easier. Doing a hard job with a companion is much easier than doing it alone. The same thing occurs along our spiritual journey. When we journey together, we can help each along the way.
In our story from Ruth, chapter one, Naomi and Ruth journey together from Moab to Bethlehem. Who knows if Naomi would have made it safely home without the encouragement of Ruth on the journey. Today you can travel this same route by car or bus. It is a mountainous 50 miles of rugged terrain which would have been a difficult hike. Although it is a short trip today, it would have taken Ruth and Naomi 7-10 days on foot.
The Bible contains many different stories about the importance of encouraging each other on the journey. Paul, on his first missionary trip, went with Barnabas whose name means encouragement. When you describe a person, you usually begin with the most important things first. If you were describing Thomas Edison, you might say he was a great inventor. From the first mention of Barnabas, we learn several important things. We learn that he was generous. Just like Jesus, he put others before himself. His parents named him Joseph, but he was such an encourager that those who knew him started calling him by the nickname of Barnabas – Son of Encouragement.
If you are in need of someone to assist you on your spiritual journey ask God who that person could be. God goes before us and as we truly seek Him, He will provide someone to help us. The Apostle Paul tells in Philippians 2:3-4 – Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. [1]
To hear more about Naomi in crisis listen here: https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/series/journey-with-the-divine-intruder/the-divine-intruder-during-crisis
[1] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Php 2:3–4). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.