As I was seeking the Lord for the month of November, I was reading the book of Ruth. As soon as I reached Ruth 3:18, the verse seemed to jump off the page: "Then Naomi said to her, 'Just be patient, my daughter, until we hear what happens. The man won't rest until he has settled things today'" (NLT).
I paused over those words: "Be patient, my daughter. The man will not rest until he settles the matter." Immediately, I began to think of those who have brought a matter before the Lord and are waiting for an answer. You have prayed, believed, and taken steps of obedience, yet the situation remains unresolved. Perhaps it has even become more complicated since you stepped out in faith.
As the year draws toward its close, you are asking, "Lord, will this be settled? Have You heard me? What happens now?" As I continued to meditate on this passage, I felt the Lord highlighting a word of encouragement for November: "Be patient, My child. I am working behind the scenes. I will settle the matter in your favor."
To appreciate the weight of Naomi's words, we need to understand what had brought Ruth to this moment.
A Future She Could Not Secure for Herself
Ruth's story began with profound loss. Her husband had died, and her mother-in-law, Naomi, had lost both her husband and her two sons. Their family faced grief, vulnerability, and an uncertain future. When Naomi decided to return to Bethlehem, Ruth chose to accompany her. She left her homeland and committed herself to Naomi, her people, and her God. Ruth could not have known what that decision would require or where it would lead. She simply placed her future into the hands of the God she had chosen to follow.
Some of you have done the same. You have surrendered familiar surroundings, personal plans, or relationships to obey the Lord. You said yes without knowing how He would provide for everything that followed. When Ruth arrived in Bethlehem, she went out to gather grain left behind by the harvesters. This provision for the poor and the foreigner was part of God's instructions to Israel in Leviticus 19:9–10. Her immediate concern was practical: she and Naomi needed food. Ruth 2:3 tells us that she found herself working in a field belonging to Boaz, a relative of Naomi's late husband. She did not enter that field knowing it could change her future. She entered it looking for provision. God was preparing more than Ruth knew to ask for.
Favor Was Preparing the Way
As I read Ruth's story, I was struck by the way favor unfolded through a series of personal encounters. First, Boaz noticed her and asked his foreman who she was. Then he approached her, encouraged her to remain in his field, and assured her of her protection. He made provision for her to drink from the water his workers had drawn.
Later, he invited her to share a meal with the harvesters. She ate until she was satisfied and had food left over. Then Boaz instructed his workers to pull additional grain from the bundles and leave it for her to gather. Think about that: Ruth was gathering provision that someone had deliberately arranged for her to find. She could see the grain, but she may never have heard the conversation that placed it in her path.
I felt the Lord reminding me that some of the favor we experience has a history we know nothing about. We encounter an open door, a timely introduction, or an unexpected kindness without seeing everything He has been doing to prepare it. Perhaps you have already experienced moments like that. Something happened that seemed unusually timely, and you wondered, "How did that come together?"
As I prayed, I sensed the Lord saying, "Remember the ways I have already cared for you. Let My faithfulness strengthen your heart for what you cannot yet see." (Photo via PickPik)
Ruth had been noticed, welcomed, protected, fed, and provided for. Yet there was still more ahead.
From Provision to Redemption
When Ruth returned home and told Naomi whose field she had worked in, Naomi recognized the significance of the encounter. Boaz was one of their family redeemers. This meant that his relationship to their family carried possibilities extending beyond the provision of food. Their family inheritance and future were now part of the unfolding story.
Later, Naomi told Ruth that she wanted to find a permanent home for her, where she would be provided for. She instructed Ruth to wash, prepare herself, and go to the threshing floor where Boaz would be spending the night. Ruth agreed to do what Naomi instructed. The Biblical account does not record every thought or emotion Ruth experienced. But we can recognize the vulnerability of what she was about to do. She would approach Boaz personally and place a request before him that she could not fulfill for herself.
At the threshing floor, Ruth asked him to spread his covering over her because he was a family redeemer (Ruth 3:9). Earlier, Boaz had blessed Ruth for seeking refuge under the wings of the God of Israel. Now Ruth was asking Boaz to become an instrument of that protection through marriage and redemption. She was asking for a future.
Then Came the Complication
Boaz responded with kindness. He recognized Ruth's character and assured her that he would do what was necessary. But there was another relative with a closer claim—the first right of redemption. Ruth had presented her request, but Boaz could not simply disregard that man's right. The matter had to be addressed. This was the part of the story that gripped my heart. Ruth's obedience brought her to a moment when the outcome was still beyond her control.
Some of you are standing in that very place. You followed what you believed the Lord was asking you to do. You humbled yourself. You took the risk. You expected the next step to bring clarity. Instead, you discovered another complication. Now there is another decision to be made, another person involved, another process to complete. You find yourself asking, "Did I misunderstand God? Was that really His leading? Why did things become more difficult after I obeyed?"
In Ruth's story, the complication did not cancel the kindness she had already received. Boaz remained willing to act. There was a matter he needed to settle. When Ruth returned to Naomi and explained what had happened, Naomi told her to be patient. She knew Boaz would attend to it.
While Ruth Waited, Boaz Was Working
The next chapter shows us what Ruth could not accomplish for herself. Boaz went to the city gate, the public place where the matter could be addressed. He called the nearer relative aside and gathered ten elders as witnesses. He presented the opportunity to redeem the family property. Initially, the nearer relative agreed to do so. Then Boaz explained the responsibility involving Ruth and the preservation of her deceased husband's family name. The man declined and relinquished his right of redemption.
Boaz then declared before the witnesses that he was acquiring the family property and taking Ruth as his wife. The people and elders responded by blessing their future together. While Ruth waited, Boaz was addressing the obstacle, gathering the witnesses, and bringing the matter to a resolution. She did not need to be present for every conversation. She did not need to persuade every person involved. She had made her request, and now Boaz was acting. The place beyond her reach was the very place where her future was being settled. (Photo via GetArchive)
As I read this, I felt such encouragement for those exhausted by trying to work out how their answer will come. You cannot enter every room. You cannot arrange every meeting. You cannot make every decision. But you can entrust your life to the Lord, follow His direction, and rest in His faithful care.
Let His Faithfulness Become the Resting Place of Your heart
This is what I feel the Lord is saying through this passage: "My child, be patient. I have heard the matter you have brought before Me. I know how deeply it concerns you. I have seen your tears, your obedience, and the courage it took to take that step of faith.
"When the situation became more complicated, you began to question whether you had heard Me. Bring those questions to Me. Let Me quiet your heart. I am working behind the scenes in your favor. There are conversations you have not heard and decisions you cannot yet see. There are ways forward that you have not considered. While you rest in Me, I can bring the right people together. I can give wisdom to those who must make decisions. I can address obstacles that you have been powerless to move.
"Continue to obey what I have shown you. Release the burden of trying to force what only I can bring about. You sought refuge under My wings. You can trust Me with your future. I have more in view than the immediate answer you are asking for. I am caring for your heart and preparing what comes after this season. Be patient, My child. I will settle the matter in your favor."
I receive this as an encouragement to trust the Lord's action and goodness. Naomi's assurance about "today" belonged to Ruth's particular circumstances; we can entrust the timing of our own answer to God. The invitation for November is to let His faithfulness become the resting place of our hearts.
More Than They Had Imagined
The settlement at the city gate opened the way for blessings Ruth and Naomi could never have fully anticipated. Boaz married Ruth, and the Lord enabled her to have a son. Naomi, who had returned to Bethlehem describing herself as "empty," now held a child whose birth brought joy and renewed hope to her family. The women of the town celebrated with her. That child, Obed, became the grandfather of King David. Generations later, Ruth's name would be recorded in the genealogy of Jesus Christ.
When Ruth went into the field to gather grain, she could not see any of this. When she approached Boaz at the threshing floor, she could not know the generations that would be touched by the answer. God's purposes reached far beyond the matter immediately before her.
This November, I want to encourage you: bring your case before the Lord again. Remember His kindness, remain faithful in what He has asked you to do, and allow Him to carry the outcome. The verse that leapt off the page continues to echo in my heart: "Be patient, my daughter. The man will not rest until he settles the matter."
Whatever you are carrying today, place it into the hands of your Redeemer. I believe He is working behind the scenes, and He will settle the matter in your favor.
I Will Not Rest Until I Settle the Matter for You
The Lord says, "My child, do not fear, for I am right in the middle of this situation, working in your favor behind the scenes. My child, I have invited you to see My glory, to experience My glory, to dream with Me. I am the God who does exceedingly abundantly above what you have asked for or desired. You have seen My hands prompt you from glory to glory. You have experienced unexpected levels of favor and thought, 'How random. That was weird.' But it wasn't random. It was divinely orchestrated. You encountered divine providence, and when you became content, I opened your eyes and gave you a glimpse of what I have for you and where I am taking you. Like I said to Peter, 'Go into the deep, and you will find fish.' (Photo via Unsplash)
"At the start, you couldn't believe it. You were like Martha, who said, 'He's dead, Lord. It's been four days' (John 11:39). But I empowered you to believe and said to you, 'If you believe, you will see My glory.' And like Ruth, you believed, you went, you washed, and you lied down. You asked in faith, expecting an immediate yes. But things became more complex, and you are growing impatient. You are confused, and you are thinking, 'Was this me, or was this God? Did I move out of the flesh, or was it God?' Doubt entered, My child, and you are in torment.
"But I lift up My voice and repeat the words Naomi spoke to Ruth: 'Just be patient, my daughter, until we hear what happens. The man won't rest until he has settled things today.' Just be patient, My child, for I am working behind the scenes in your favor. You are not just anybody. You left your people and your gods to be Mine. You have found protection under My wings, and I will be the one to reward you fully.
"While you rest, I will go before you into places you cannot enter. While you rest, I will gather the right people and arrange meetings you know nothing about. While you rest, I will present your case before those who have the authority to make decisions. While you rest, I will confront obstacles that have stood between you and your inheritance. While you rest, I will remove opposition and make room for what I have prepared for you.
"I am turning complicated situations into divine resolutions. I am turning witnesses of your struggle into witnesses of your blessing! My child, Ruth was resting, but Boaz was working! She could not see what was happening at the city gate, but decisions were being made that would change her destiny forever. Do not mistake My silence for inactivity, or your waiting for My absence! There are conversations you haven't heard, meetings you haven't attended, and decisions you haven't seen.
"Rest, My child! What concerns you is not forgotten. I am working behind the scenes. My child, I am not only bringing your matter to a conclusion, I am preparing blessings beyond the matter itself. Where you have experienced rejection, I am bringing acceptance. Where you have experienced loss, I am bringing restoration. Where you have waited in uncertainty, I am bringing peace. And where you thought your story was ending, I am preparing a new beginning.
"Remember Naomi, who once said she had returned empty. She never imagined that the very situation that had brought her so much sorrow would become the place of her restoration. The women who had heard her sorrow would one day celebrate her joy! And the child born to Ruth became a testimony that God's story was greater than anything they could have imagined. So rest, My beloved. You do not have to know every detail. You do not have to understand every delay. You do not have to fight every battle.
"Trust Me with what you cannot see. I am not only attending to your case, I am caring for your heart, your future, and the generations that will follow you. What concerns you has not escaped My attention. Rest, My child. I am working behind the scenes, for I will not rest until I settle the matter for you."
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Yvon Attia
Celebrate Freedom Ministries
Email:Â info@celebratefreedomministries.org
Website:Â www.celebratefreedomministries.org
Yvon Attia is a radical lover of Jesus and His Word, fully dedicated to His purposes and His call. Yvon is an author and a powerful, passionate speaker who preaches the Word with the power of God's Spirit, and the manifestation of His presence. She unpacks the Word from a Middle Eastern perspective, explaining its depth in terms of culture, context and power. Yvon is married to her high school sweetheart, Mina, and they have two beautiful children, Esther and Raphael. Both Yvon and her husband are ordained pastors under the spiritual fatherhood covering of Apostle Guillermo Maldonado Of King Jesus International Ministry in Miami. Miracles of healing take place during their meetings as God faithfully confirms the Word through signs that follow. They are also the founders of Celebrate Freedom Ministry, which is part of the supernatural global network of King Jesus International Ministry.
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