If there was ever a woman in history who could have succumbed to victimhood in life, it was undoubtedly the biblical character Ruth.

There she was; a childless woman in the ancient near east (don’t even get me started), a widow (a catastrophic situation in her day and time), a foreigner living in Israel without any support system (except her bitter mother-in-law), and completely destitute.

Ruth refused to waste her life bemoaning the unfair situation that she found herself in. Instead, she looked for opportunities. Then she worked hard. In the end, it all paid off in some of the most unexpected ways.

Ruth’s great strength of character was stunning and inspiring.

Listen friend, there are powerful people who want us to fall into the trap of victimhood. They divide us into categories of us and them. Everybody is either a victim or a victimizer. They work to convince us that “they” are trying to hold us back or push us around or take something from us. They stir up distrust, suspicion and conflict.

And the truth is, these people want the conflict and the distrust. They thrive on it. Without it, they can’t sell books, get speaking engagements, or get on TV. They want us at odds with each other because that works for them.

Let’s not fall for it. God did not call us to be victims, Romans 8:31 reminds us that if God is for us, who can be against us?

If Ruth had seen herself as a helpless victim of her circumstances, she would have never become all that God wanted her to be. Ruth took the opportunities that God put in front of her and eventually found herself in the family of the Messiah. Let’s be like Ruth.