“Those who feared the LORD spoke to one another. The LORD took notice and listened. So a book of remembrance was written before him for those who feared the LORD and had high regard for His name” Mal 3:16 CSB

Imagine for a minute what the library in heaven must look like. Its shelves must stretch for miles and miles! The prophet Malachi is saying something here that is not only profound, but exhilarating. Whenever you or I or any of His children speak reverently about Him and the things pertaining to His Kingdom, He takes notice, then preserves our conversations for eternity.

God–Creator, Designer, and Sustainer of the Universe–is also an Author. David had a revelation about this when he was captured by the Philistines. Some years prior, David had completely humiliated them when he decapitated their hero, Goliath. Despite facing certain retribution, Psalm 56 says David beamed with confidence: “This I know: God is on my side!” (v.9) He further declared:

“You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book” (v.8, NLT)

He realized this great and awesome God was intimately acquainted with him. Because he feared the Lord, a book citing his deeds was being written about him by the Hand of God. Psalm 139 states David understood that the Lord even witnessed the times when he sat down, and when he stood up again. The details of his life, from the moment the Father had formed and fashioned him in his mother’s womb ‘til he breathed his last breath, were being “recorded in Your book” (v.16).

We might think it reasonable that God would write David’s story. Afterall, he was exceptional, a leader who strides the stage of world history, a standout in so many ways. But would He really take an interest in someone like me? Is my story worth telling? Does God really care about the things I say and do?

Did you ever notice something seems a bit out of place about Jesus’ genealogy? Historically and culturally speaking, genealogies typically follow the fathers’ ancestral line. But Matthew strangely includes the names of four women in 1:3-6. This is not random. It reveals God’s heart. Though each of these women had strikingly embarrassing flaws (one committed incest, one adultery, and another was a prostitute!), God remembers them. A whole chapter in Genesis is devoted to Tamar. Rahab’s story occupies parts of Joshua 2 and 6, and she is heralded as an example of faith in both James and Hebrews. Solomon was so impacted by his mom, Bathsheba, that he praises her in more than 20 verses of Proverbs.

And then there is Ruth. Why is she so special? She was a Moabitess, raised in idolatry. Yet when presented with the opportunity to return home to her people, to the prospect of marriage and comfort, Ruth chose to cling to her mother-in-law Naomi, and to Naomi’s God. When she did, the Lord took notice and listened, and a book of remembrance was written about Ruth. Her actions proved that she had high regard for His name, so God recorded her story in detail, and He rewarded her. Not only did she become the great-grandmother of King David, her legacy includes being in the ancestry of Jesus, the Son of God.

While it would be impractical to honor every person in Israel’s history who excelled in the fear of the Lord with his or her own book in the Bible, the Book of Ruth forever stands as a clear reminder to us of the truth of Malachi’s words. God takes notice of the lowly and flawed, of people with checkered pasts and “disqualifying” resumes. It is not just the David’s of history that are enshrined in His scrolls. If we hold Him in the highest regard—if we adore, esteem, and pursue Him–He’s watching and listening. And if we could see beyond the veil and into His courts, we might even see Him, eyes a-twinkle at His desk with quill in hand, proudly composing another chapter in the book that bears your name.