A Love Letter to Widows and their Children

A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy habitation. God sets the solitary in families; He brings out those who are bound into prosperity; but the rebellious dwell in a dry land. (Psalm 68:5-6)

This is a letter of love from God to guide widows and their children in the way by which God wants to help them. If you are a widow, please consider this as God’s answer to your prayers. God encoded this way in the Bible, demonstrating it in how He turned around the life of Ruth, a stranger and widow in Israel. This way is what we have termed the 7-Step Boaz Process.

Step 1: Set in a God-Governed Family (Ruth 2:1-3)

The first thing God did for Ruth was to put her in a God-governed family. Boaz was an example of a man who led a God-governed family. He was a man of God who owned a business with many workers under him. God set Ruth in a God-governed family by guiding her footsteps to request permission to be a worker on Boaz’s farm. This is the first thing God does to help widows and fatherless children. In a God-governed family widows and fatherless children are provided with livelihood support and training to do things God’s way. Bible believing churches and ministries are a prime example of such families. The Boaz Family is also a God-governed family. Have you been set by God in one of them?

Step 2: Work for Your Own Necessities (Ruth 2:6-7)

Having been set in a God-governed family, Ruth ensured that she worked hard each day to earn a living. This is the second stage in God’s way of taking widows and fatherless children out of poverty. The provision of food, clothing and shelter for you and your family is your responsibility! God expects that we work to fend for our own needs. You can get a job or do your own small business. If no one will employ you, start working by volunteering your expertise and skills for free. What you are doing today may be generating very little. Keep on! That is the place where God will meet with you.

Step 3: Training in God’s Word (Ruth 2:8-12)

In this stage God’s representative that governs the family takes on the responsibility of teaching God’s word to the widow and fatherless child. And the individual being trained takes on the responsibility of learning and obedience. In the Boaz Family we organise training sessions for our beneficiaries. We train on God’s word as regards finances, business, and economic prosperity.

In Ruth 2:8-9 we see God training Ruth by the instructions Boaz gave to her. Notice also that Boaz referred to her as a daughter, signifying that she was now set in a God-governed family led by Boaz. It says: “Boaz went over and said to Ruth, “listen, my daughter. Stay right here with us when you gather grain; don’t go to any other fields. Stay right behind the young women working in my field. See which part of the field they are harvesting, and then follow them. I have warned the young men not to treat you roughly. And when you are thirsty, help yourself to the water they have drawn from the well.”

Step 4: Rich in Faith (Ruth 2:11-13)

This is the first type of riches God gave to Ruth. She believed when Boaz told her that God will repay her for her kindness to her mother in-law. As the widow and fatherless child continue to understand the word of God, faith is released in their hearts. This faith is the title deed to access God’s blessings. Without faith in God the widow/fatherless child will give up on living right and doing the right things. With faith in God, you can please Him and receive blessings from Him.

Step 5: Rich in Liberality (Ruth 2:14, 17-18)

This is the second type of riches God gives to the widow and fatherless child. They must cultivate hearts that are rich towards God through giving. By this we mean you must financially support God’s work in the world. This include giving towards the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ, giving to the poor and vulnerable in society, and any other thing God has asked to be done. Ruth always kept back some lunch which she took back home to Naomi her mother in-law.

Step 6: Wisdom for Creative Enterprise (Ruth 3:1-4)

The ‘Wisdom for Creative Enterprise’ that we are talking about is God’s plan for your financial security. Things have not worked out well for you until now because this plan is yet to be revealed to you. God wants to give you wisdom by which you will access the things God reserved for you from the foundation of the world. You did not come into the world as an accident (2 Kings 4:1-7). Pray for God to reveal His wisdom to you. God can reveal this wisdom to you directly (vision, dreams, etc.) or he can speak to you through advice from those around you as He did for Ruth through Naomi.

Step 7: Mighty to Provide Economic Leadership (Ruth 4:11-12)

This is the last stage in the promotion of the widow and fatherless children. As they do their businesses/jobs given to them by God, they become wealthy over time. They become role models for righteousness in the society. Their lives and achievements become a story that teach people to obey and serve God (Job 36:5-12).

In conclusion, we strongly recommend that widows and their children adopt these 7 steps as their roadmap for the future. God wants to step into your family to play the role of a father that provides and protects. What He requires of you is obedience to follow His laid down pattern. Memorize these 7 steps by heart, and let them guide you through life. We wish you all the best in life.