Many of you start back to school today. Some of you started back last week. This is a day that brings many mixed emotions. It is exciting to start a new year, to see old friends, and to be a year older. It is also full of great anxiety over the unknown. What if my friends don’t like me anymore? What if my teachers are mean or boring? What if I don’t make get the part in the play or make the team I want?

In our reading for today, in Ruth 3:8-13, we see that Ruth did a bold thing and faced her fears with courage. She was a woman who had nothing and society said she deserved nothing. Yet, she was courageous enough to ask Boaz to marry her and to protect and provide for her.

Here’s the one part of the reading that I want you to focus on today. Boaz had what Ruth needed to survive and she boldly asked for it. She said, “spread your cloak over your servant, for you are a redeemer (that means someone who can rescue a person in need).”

We are like Ruth in the world. Maybe you feel like Ruth as you head back to school. You are nervous, and perhaps afraid of what might happen. Remember this: You have a redeemer. God is faithful to you and has everything you need. Ask God for help today. Trust that God is with you and wants nothing more than for you to know that you are loved, so that you can love others.

Go in peace today. God has spread God’s cloak over you, and you are redeemed. Maybe you can share that cloak with someone else who feels a little bit afraid today, as well.