Judah vs Moab

Please, never get to a place where food becomes of such vital importance that you consciously replace praise with food. The question is this; How far will you go for the sake of food? What and who are you willing to jeopardize just because of food? Do not get me wrong. Food is good and only good for the purpose for which it serves. However, when it becomes a primary focus to a place where lives and destiny are negatively affected, I call it idolatry and call on you to take a second look at the priority/priorities you place on food.

Listen, it was because of hunger that Elimelech decided for himself and his family to leave the house of bread and the place of praise to a land of idolatry.

This may seem so absurd until I take you to the book of Luke 4:1-2. When you look at the life of Jesus, you will agree with me that he understood what food can do to a person. Before Jesus began the ministry, we are told that he was led into the wilderness by the Spirit where for 40days he was tempted by the devil and he ate nothing during this time.

One may say, oh well, Jesus was fasting so there was no need for food. But if you know his story well, you also know that he was tempted to turn stones to bread. And he had the power to do so but did not.

I emphasize so much on food because it is one aspect that a son of God needs to come to terms with. Food should never be a determining factor in your life. By this I mean, do not consult food or food should not be the foundation of a destiny-defining decision. It is a very costly route to pursue.

So, Judah vs Moab? Symbolically, Praise vs Idolatry? Which would you prefer?

I encourage you to praise your way through your famine as you rely on His promises than settle for idolatry.

Temporal Decision(s) Can Lead To Permanent Change(s)

We saw earlier the reason why we believe that Elimelech did not mean to make his stay in Moab a permanent one.

Ruth 1:6 (NIV)

When Naomi heard in Moab that the Lord had come to the aid of his people by providing food for them, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there.

Elimelek made a decision for himself and on behalf of his family to settle in Moab for a while. Perhaps, after the famine in Bethlehem, they will return. However, his decision was questionable because he left a place of potential fruitfulness to a place where idolatry was the order of the day. Moab was known for idol worship.

This was a costly decision because Elimelek did not get the chance to correct himself.

Decisions are never to be taken lightly or made casually. The outcome of any decision can bless you or leave you permanently broken.

For Elimelek, he died in Moab and his two sons died after about 10years of marriage. Elimelech did not even get a chance to see and enjoy the marriage of his sons.

Noami became a widow instantly and did not get to remarry. Ruth later got married to Boaz and we are not told about the future of Orpah.

Although not mentioned, it is a risk at your own expense to purposefully position yourself in the midst of idolatry versus when you are forcefully recruited to live in a land where idolatry is the order of the day.

That was the fate of Elimelech. He consciously decided to live in Moab.

This is significant because, as much as we see that there were physical repercussions, there could be possibilities that they could have suffered spiritually.

Here is our focus, do not allow temporal situations cause you to make temporal decisions which may lead to permanent changes be it in the physical and the spiritual.