by Noli Garrett,
"O-H!”
...If your natural reaction to that is "I-O", you might just bleed scarlet and white like my family! If those letters brought angst to your heart, I'm guessing your team loyalty lies somewhere else. Maybe even with that team up north... Does your family have a favorite team? I mean, a team you are avid fans of. You go to all the games, you know all the players, even the coaches. Your whole family can probably agree that you are LOYAL to that team’s colors, even LOYAL to scheduling your life around the games!
Most of the time loyalty comes from a place of passion, or even nostalgia. Your family can all gather around the TV and enjoy this one thing together! It unites you!
As great as these interests are, let’s be real—they have no eternal value.
While there is nothing wrong with cheering for a sport or a team, the pursuit of these things don’t intentionally draw you closer to our Creator.
The story of Ruth shows us what it looks like for someone to be a loyal (avid, on-going) follower of God and to trust that His plan for us is good—even when we just feel as if life has tackled us to the ground! Isn’t that a quality you want to teach your children? To be filled with trust and loyalty for our Creator!
So how do you teach your daughter to be a loyal friend and Christ-follower? Here are three things to plant in her heart as she begins to navigate her life!
#1 When hard times show up, a loyal girl doesn’t run away.
Not only does she not run away, she runs toward it with full faith in the Lord’s character! She trusts that God is faithful to her. When your daughter chooses to stick with her friends (even through some of those seemingly silly arguments), that’s when real relationships form. And when she chooses to be there for her friends, that’s when she will show God’s love to them by being loyal!
#2 When a loyal girl or guy sees someone who is lonely, they bring comfort.
Boaz is a great example of this...When he saw Ruth’s loneliness and need, he stepped up.
He told her in Ruth 2:8,
“Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women.”
He then continued on to tell her how he had put in measures to protect her. He was loyal. Loyal to her when he didn’t even know her! Boaz saw her need and stepped up. And guess what...Ruth felt comforted and taken care of!
#3 A loyal girl trusts that God is in control of the outcome.
One of the hardest fruits of the spirit has to be patience. It’s a life-long struggle (at least for me it is). Seeking God in times of uncertainty not only can be scary but it can be frustrating. Patiently waiting on God for an answer to “solve” our issues is not a virtue most people can attest to. But I think God wants us to be able to lean into Him when times get tough. When we tell God, “I trust you—no matter what,” we are showing Him that we are LOYAL to Him and His ways!
We would love for you to share these truths with the True Girl you love, but you’ve heard the saying... ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS. It’s not enough for you or your daughter to just hear these things, you have to work it into your lives.
Check out these resources to dive deeper with your tween girl!
Do you have a daughter who might like to go deeper in the story of Ruth? True Girl has released an all-new study on the book of Ruth for girls ages 8–12. Ruth: Becoming a Girl of Loyalty. Together, you’ll explore topics like true friendship, finding joy in hard times, dealing with mean people, and seeing God in painful circumstances. You can even sign up to go through the study online with Dannah Gresh and Staci Rudolph!
True Girl Bible Studies feature important women in the Bible so girls can learn from their example. We created them to help moms—and grandmoms—teach their daughters and granddaughters how to study God’s Word.
Subscribe to True Girl's monthly subscription plan!
Meet the True Girl subscription box: her new Bible Study BFF. Intentionally packed with your tween (7-12) girl in mind, it’s full of daily devos to get her in the Word, mom+daughter dates that get you connecting, and exclusive bonus items from True Girl and other ministries we trust! It’s the most fun you’ll ever have digging into God’s Word together at home.
