"There was a relative of Naomi's husband, a man of great wealth, of the family of Elimelech. His name was Boaz. So Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, 'Please let me go to the field, and glean heads of grain after him in whose sight I may find favor.' And she said to her, 'Go, my daughter.' Then she left, and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech...
Then Boaz said to Ruth, 'You will listen, my daughter, will you not? Do not go to glean in another field, nor go from here, but stay close by my young women. Let your eyes be on the field which they reap, and go after them. Have I not commanded the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink from what the young men have drawn.'
So she fell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, 'Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?' And Boaz answered and said to her, 'It has been fully reported to me, all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know before. The LORD repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge.'" Ruth 2:1-12
Sometimes it may seem as if your actions (and motives) go unnoticed, but God takes note. The Bible says, "Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you." Hosea 10:12 "He who sows iniquity will reap sorrow, and the rod of his anger will fail." Proverbs 22:8 Nothing done in this life is meaningless. The Bible teaches that you reap what you sow. So plant goodness in your life and do not give up doing good in life no matter how hard it gets.
It may take years to see the results of your choices - and you may not ever see the full harvest of your actions in this life. Yet the Bible says, "Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him." Psalm 126:5-6 Whether you will come back from the harvest rejoicing depends on what you are planting right now. So what are you planting? "For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." Ecclesiastes 12:14 It is more important to have a harvest God can approve of in the judgment than one others can see.
Picture originally found here
