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At the center of this gospel reading is a conversation. It was of the memorable variety. It involved a peasant girl from a small town and a mighty messenger from God.
Matthew tells us how Jesus came from a proud and glorious lineage of . . . well, of prostitutes, thieves, and murderers as well as kings and prophets, all of whom happen to be God's people. Jesus reaches all the way down into our humanity so that He can fulfill everything for us.
We do not believe that the virgin mother bore a son and that he is the Lord and Savior unless I believe the second thing, that he is my Savior and Lord.
God sent his Son down into the hidden places of our dark and dirty world to find us, and to the cross to wipe away our sins forever. That is what this story is all about.
So what happens when you come to the lowest moment of your life and doubt that anything good can come out of it? God meets you there in His Redeemer. Craig and Troy finish up the book of Ruth.
It's not always the giants, the obvious enemies, the clear battlefields that prove most exhausting and dangerous for us. It’s the ongoing, subtle, seductive, soul-gnawing smaller things in life that wear us down. What's a person to do?