BEHIND THE SCENES
"Don't call me Naomi," she told them. "Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me." (Ruth 1:20-21.)
This was the declaration of Naomi, an elderly Jewish woman who had lost her husband and two sons over the course of 10 years. Famine in Israel had driven the family from their home to the land of Moab, a foreign country many miles away. A decade later, Naomi returned to her people with only the clothes on her back and the companionship of her daughter-in-law, Ruth.
While Naomi’s response sounds like an accusation against God, it actually reveals a mature understanding of the truth. Although her perspective was colored from pain, Naomi recognized God’s sovereignty over the circumstances of her life. God, alone, was ultimately in control of her fate.
Some folks will say, “A real Christian would never feel bitter,” yet if that is true, then what are we to make of Naomi's words? What I love about this passage is that God has not hidden the conflicting and objectionable emotions of human beings. Naomi was in anguish and she blamed God for her fate. I can identify with her because I, too, have fallen into pits of bitterness, feeling that God had permitted too much loss in my life. Bitterness is clearly a damaging emotion and certainly not a state of mind that we can afford to maintain. Nevertheless, it is an emotion that we must contend with--to deny it or suppress it does more harm than good. God knows our weaknesses and He is our only hope for overcoming them.
I struggled over my bitter feelings toward God. I didn’t want those emotions, and I knew I needed to change. But I took great comfort from this passage about Naomi. To discover that the saints of the past had also dealt with bitterness helped to dispel the fear that God would reject me because of mine. God’s word opened my understanding to see that He is bigger than my emotions, and that He is willing to help us overcome them if we will be honest with Him.
Even more stunning about this story is this: Although Naomi believed that God had dealt her a raw hand, all the while God had been working behind the scenes, setting her up for one of the deepest honors in the world. Not only was Naomi chosen to bring Ruth into the fold of faith, but Naomi became the grandmother of Ruth’s son, Obed, who became the father of Jesse, who became the father of King David, who eventually led to the birth of Jesus! After reading this story literally dozens of times, it occurred to me that Naomi lived and died never knowing the bigger picture—never seeing God’s long range plans and the way He connected her to the royal lineage of Christ.
Unlike the Old Testament saints, we are privileged to have access to God’s full written word, the Holy Scriptures, so we can peer into the past and witness the unfolding of God’s wonderful plan throughout the centuries. When our hearts cry out, “What is the point of my suffering?” we can know from the book of Ruth that God uses even seemingly unimportant people and events to orchestrate monumental happenings in this world. Naomi’s life is a beautiful demonstration of God’s promise in Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Prayer: Lord, it is so difficult to keep a big-picture perspective, to trust that you are lovingly working behind the scenes to weave my afflictions into your perfect plan. Free my heart of any bitterness and open my eyes to the blessings You have bestowed upon me. Help me to trust You even though I cannot perceive Your purpose. Amen.
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