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Turning | Ruth 1

Overview

Life rarely unfolds the way we imagined it would. Childhood dreams often collide with unexpected loss, disappointment, broken relationships, illness, and grief. In this message, Liz walks through Ruth chapter 1, showing that every person eventually arrives at a crossroads where they must decide what direction they will take. Will they turn away from God? Return to Him while remaining bitter? Or fully turn toward Him in faith?

The opening chapter of Ruth is filled with tragedy, but it also introduces the first rays of hope. Liz reminds us that God is often working long before we can see it. Even in our deepest pain, He is preparing redemption. While suffering is real, it is never the end of the story for those who trust Him. Christ is the ultimate fulfillment of the hope first hinted at in Ruth's journey.

Introduction: When Life Doesn't Turn Out the Way We Planned

Liz begins by reflecting on the excitement of leaving home after high school and the dreams she carried into adulthood. Like many people, some dreams came true while many unfolded very differently than she expected.

She invites everyone to think about their own lives:

Those questions prepare us to enter Ruth chapter 1.

Naomi had what most people would consider the ideal life:

Then famine came.

Instead of trusting God in the Promised Land, Naomi's family fled to Moab—a place associated with Israel's enemies. What began as a search for survival became a journey into devastating loss.

One by one Naomi lost:

Liz paints Naomi's grief vividly, helping listeners feel the crushing weight of losing nearly everything she loved.

She challenges listeners to consider how closely Naomi's story resembles many of our own lives. While our losses may look different, everyone eventually experiences broken dreams, unanswered prayers, painful relationships, sickness, discouragement, or grief that leaves us wondering where God is.

The central question of the chapter becomes:

When life falls apart, what direction will you turn?

1. Godly Grief

Liz explains that Naomi and Orpah both experienced unimaginable pain, but neither initially responded by grieving with God.

Naomi returned to Bethlehem physically, but emotionally she remained trapped in bitterness. She even rejected her own name ("Naomi," meaning pleasant) and asked to be called "Mara," meaning bitter.

Rather than seeing grief as something to avoid, Liz teaches that grief itself is holy when it is brought before God.

God never asks His people to pretend they aren't hurting.

Instead, Scripture repeatedly shows God's people lamenting.

David filled the Psalms with tears.

Jesus Himself wept at Lazarus' tomb.

Our grief becomes holy when we allow it to draw us closer to the heart of God instead of further away.

Liz shares her own story of years of severe back pain while serving as missionaries in Hungary. Endless doctor visits and chronic suffering left her repeatedly asking, "Why, God?"

She explains that pain naturally tempts us toward bitterness because pain makes us forget two important truths:

Bitterness grows when we refuse to mourn honestly before God.

Godly grief, however, allows us to mourn what God mourns—the brokenness of a fallen world and the separation sin has created.

Instead of accusing God, we are invited to cry with Him.

Instead of hiding our pain, we are invited to bring it before Him.

God does not reject grieving people.

He welcomes them.

Bible Verses

Key Quotes

"There is a holiness to weeping."

"When we weep, we join God in mourning things that are not the way they are supposed to be."

"Instead of bitterness, choose godly grief."

"Take your discouragement and disappointment to the Lord."

2. Choose the God Choosing You

Liz contrasts the three women in Ruth 1.

Ruth had every earthly reason to go back.

She was a Moabite.

She worshipped false gods.

She had no promise of security in Israel.

She had no guarantee of acceptance.

Yet she chose faith over familiarity.

Liz shares her testimony about attending a Christian camp after losing her grandmother. She remembers watching a pastor lovingly embrace two young girls, and something awakened inside her heart.

She realized she longed for a Father who delighted in her.

That moment helped her understand that God had been pursuing her all along.

In the same way, Ruth was not simply choosing God.

God had already been drawing Ruth toward Himself.

Liz encourages listeners to recognize this same truth.

God is not waiting reluctantly for us to come.

He is already pursuing us with love.

Every person eventually stands where Ruth stood:

Will we return to what is familiar but lifeless?

Or will we trust the God who is calling us into new life?

Faith often means stepping into an unknown future because we trust the One leading us.

Bible Verses

In this message, Coleton concludes the Lord's Prayer series by focusing on one of the most overlooked phrases Jesus ever taught us to pray:

Many Christians are comfortable praying for daily needs, forgiveness, or God's will, but often neglect this final request. Yet Jesus intentionally ends His model prayer by teaching His followers to pray against spiritual evil. Coleton explains that this isn't reserved for unusually spiritual Christians or for a specific period of history—it is meant to become a normal part of every believer's prayer life.

Using Scripture, historical examples, and practical application, Coleton reminds us that while Christians should never seek out spiritual warfare, we are also never called to ignore it. Instead, Jesus gives us a weapon: prayer. Through prayer, we ask God to fight for us, protect us, and advance His kingdom against the kingdom of darkness.

Coleton opens with a story from his father, who taught him never to start a fight—but if one became unavoidable, fight hard enough that the enemy would never forget it.

The Lord's Prayer gradually teaches us how to approach God:

Coleton points out that Jesus intentionally ends His model prayer here. That means fighting spiritual evil isn't an optional part of Christianity—it is part of ordinary Christian prayer.

Matthew 6:9–13

Coleton explains that beneath every broken relationship, every injustice, every war, every addiction, every lie, and every act of rebellion lies a deeper spiritual problem.

This explains why so much of Jesus' earthly ministry involved confronting demons, healing people oppressed by evil, and setting captives free.

Rather than teaching His followers to hate people, Jesus commanded them to:

Coleton spends time explaining Daniel 10, where Daniel prayed for understanding for twenty-one days. God immediately heard his prayer, yet an angel was delayed because of conflict with spiritual powers described as the "Prince of Persia."

This passage offers a glimpse behind the curtain of history. Events on earth often reflect a much greater conflict taking place in the unseen spiritual realm.

Paul teaches the same reality in Ephesians: our true struggle is never against flesh and blood.

Matthew 6:13

"Spiritual beings are associated with nation-states... Michael fights for God's people, while the prince of Persia is a demonic power." — D.A. Carson

Coleton reminds us that no one escapes spiritual warfare.

Coleton carefully avoids extremes.

The Bible teaches that sometimes our own sinful desires lead us into temptation. Other times physical problems simply require ordinary wisdom and medical care.

Still, Scripture clearly teaches that Satan actively seeks to:

Because Jesus knows His followers will encounter spiritual opposition, He teaches them to pray for God's protection regularly.

2 Corinthians 4:4

"After a man is converted... Satan gathers all his forces... because he cannot bear to lose his subjects." — Charles Spurgeon

Coleton emphasizes that prayer is much more than bringing requests to God.

Coleton reminds us of the story where the disciples could not cast a demon out of a boy.

The Christian does not defeat darkness through cleverness, politics, anger, intimidation, or force.

2 Corinthians 10:3–4

"Christians can wage a successful campaign in the spiritual realm only when they abandon human resources and totally rely on spiritual weapons." — D.A. Carson

After explaining why Jesus included this prayer, Coleton gives several practical responses.

Christians should recognize spiritual warfare without becoming frightened by it.

1 John 4:4

Coleton warns against seeing demons behind every inconvenience.

James 1

When Jesus faced Satan's temptations in the wilderness, He answered every attack with Scripture.

Matthew 4

Coleton challenges the church to actually pray the prayer Jesus taught.

"Satan dreads nothing but prayer... He laughs at our toil... but he trembles when we pray." — Samuel Chadwick

Coleton closes with an illustration from the final days of World War II.

Why do

Most people spend their lives trying to prove they're good enough or trying to hide the parts of themselves they're ashamed of. Jesus offers something radically different: a God who already knows your worst, still loves you completely, and invites you to stop pretending and simply come home.

In this message, Coleton continues through the Lord's Prayer by focusing on one of the most uncomfortable—and most freeing—requests Jesus teaches us to pray:

"Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." (Matthew 6:12)

Many people assume confession is something spiritually immature Christians do. Once you've followed Jesus long enough, you shouldn't need to confess very often. Coleton challenges that assumption by showing that Jesus teaches the exact opposite.

The mark of spiritual maturity is not pretending you've stopped sinning. The mark of maturity is becoming increasingly honest about your sin because you've become increasingly confident in the Father's love.

Coleton begins with a simple story about a child being told to own up to a mistake. Owning our failures is difficult, but it is one of the clearest signs of maturity. The same is true spiritually. Jesus invites His followers into a regular rhythm of confession—not because God is angry with them, but because He wants them to experience His grace again and again.

Tyler Staton captures this beautifully:

"One of the biggest mistakes we've made in the modern church is to reimagine spiritual maturity as the need to confess less... A maturing community is a confessing community—not a church without sin, but a church without secrets."

Before explaining why confession matters, Coleton highlights three important observations from Jesus' prayer.

Jesus does not begin the Lord's Prayer with confession.

He first teaches us to call God Father, to worship Him, seek His Kingdom, and ask Him for our daily needs.

That order matters.

God isn't waiting for us to clean ourselves up before He listens to us. He isn't withholding His love until we've confessed every failure.

Coleton illustrates this with his son Teddy. He would never refuse Teddy breakfast or a hug until Teddy apologized for everything he did wrong the day before. Healthy relationships don't work that way, and neither does God's relationship with His children.

Confession is something we practice within the security of being loved—not something we do to earn God's love.

Jesus doesn't say:

"If you've sinned..."

He simply teaches us to pray:

"Forgive us our debts."

Jesus assumes every disciple will continue battling sin.

If we struggle to keep diets, New Year's resolutions, or promises to ourselves, how much more do we struggle to meet God's perfect holiness?

The prayer keeps us humble by reminding us that every believer continually depends upon God's grace.

Perhaps the most sobering part of the prayer is this phrase:

"Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors."

Coleton describes this as the "fine print" of the prayer.

Every time we pray these words, we're asking God:

"Forgive me the same way I've forgiven others."

That should cause every Christian to examine their heart.

If we refuse to forgive those who have hurt us, we're asking God to respond to us with that same unwillingness.

Jesus is exposing whether His grace has truly transformed us. Grace received always becomes grace extended.

Many people think confession is primarily about focusing on their failures.

Jesus says it's actually about experiencing God's kindness.

Coleton points to one of Jesus' greatest stories—the Prodigal Son.

Before the son ever finishes confessing...

The father runs.

He hugs him.

He kisses him.

The embrace comes before the confession.

"While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion... he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him..."

The son's confession lasts only a few words.

The father doesn't interrogate him.

He doesn't demand every detail.

He doesn't shame him.

Instead he interrupts him with celebration.

The robe.

The ring.

The feast.

The party.

The father's joy completely overshadows the son's failure.

Coleton explains that this is exactly how Jesus wants us to picture confession.

Confession isn't crawling toward an angry God.

It is stepping into the embrace of a Father who already loves His children.

He summarizes confession in three movements:

The Father never brings the son's past back up. Even when the older brother tries to, the father defends him.

That is the heart of God.

Sin naturally produces hiding.

Adam and Eve sinned, and their first instinct was to hide.

We still do the same thing today.

We hide behind excuses.

We curate better versions of ourselves.

We pretend.

Jesus wants to completely reverse that instinct.

Instead of hiding from God, He wants us to run toward Him.

Coleton emphasizes that God is the safest person in the universe to bring your worst mistakes.

There is nothing you can confess that surprises Him.

Nothing that makes Him love you less.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes:

"You are a sinner, a great, desperate sinner; now come... to the God who loves you... He wants you as you are... You can hide nothing from God... with Him, you can dare to be a sinner."

That phrase becomes the heart of this section:

"Dare to be a sinner with God."

Instead of pretending, come honestly.

God promises mercy.

1 John 1:9

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

Hidden sin grows stronger.

Confessed sin begins to lose its grip.

Coleton turns to David's words after his own failure.

David describes the physical and emotional weight of hidden sin.

His strength dried up.

His bones wasted away.

But everything changed once he confessed.

Coleton summarizes it simply:

Sin in our hands leads to death. Sin placed in God's hands is put to death.

Many believers spend years trying to conquer sin through sheer determination.

Jesus offers a different way.

Bring it into the light.

Ray Ortlund says:

"We don't overcome sin by heroic willpower, but by confessing them to death."

Tyler Staton compares confession to visiting a doctor.

Healing begins when we're honest enough to identify what's actually wrong.

Confession is not humiliation.

It's the pathway to healing.

Jesus deliberately uses the language of debt.

Sin creates a debt we cannot repay.

Many people instinctively believe they can balance the scales.

If they simply become nicer...

Serve more...

Give more...

Work harder...

Surely God will overlook the bad.

Jesus completely rejects that way of thinking.

He doesn't teach us to pray:

"Help me work off my sins."

Instead He teaches us to ask for forgiveness because forgiveness is the only solution.

We cannot erase our own debt.

Only Jesus can.

Coleton reminds the church that admitting this requires humility.

Many people cannot admit they need mercy.

But everyone who does finds more grace than they ever imagined.

Pete Greig writes:

"There is more grace in God than there is sin in you... Pray 'forgive us our sins'... and He'll forgive you. Just like that."

This is the gospel.

Our debt isn't reduced.

It's erased.

The final point may be the most beautiful.

God doesn't reluctantly forgive.

He delights to forgive.

Forgiveness isn't something we convince Him to do.

It is something He loves to do.

Coleton quotes Dane Ortlund, who reminds us that Christ finds joy when sinners come to Him for mercy.

Jesus endured the cross because He delighted in making sinful people clean.

Coleton uses a helpful illustration.

Imagine asking a bank to forgive every debt you owe.

It would seem impossible.

But imagine someone had already paid every dollar you owed.

Walking into the bank would suddenly become an act of confidence, not desperation.

That is exactly what Jesus accomplished on the cross.

Our confidence isn't in ourselves.

It's in the One who already paid our debt.

Ray Ortlund summarizes this beautifully:

"God welcomes people who keep coming back to Him for more and more and more mercy... He isn't tired, and He isn't tired of you."

Because Jesus has already paid the debt, believe