Friday Reading: Ruth 1:19-22
Key Verse: Ruth 1:21
21 I went out full, and the LORD hath brought me home again empty: why then call ye me Naomi, seeing the LORD hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?
Devotion:
It is quite easy in rough and tough times to turn your blame onto someone else and to try and make yourself feel better in some way by knowing or thinking that it is because of someone else that you are in the position you are in. That was not the case for Naomi because she knew that she was in this place because God had allowed it to happen that way. She was not blaming God for what had happened but rather accepting that God had allowed something terrible to happen for some reason. It did not mean that she was happy about her situation; far from it because she wanted to be known as ‘Mara’, meaning bitter instead of Naomi meaning sweet.
It is not for us to blame God for anything that does happen in our lives but rather to look back to Him for the support and guidance that he can supply to us so that we can get through our trials and tribulations. Naomi had lost a terrible lot in not just losing her husband, but both of her sons as well. Her hopes for grandchildren looked rather bleak from this moment onward. But that did not mean that she gave up on God. Instead she looked back to Him for that support and guidance. She returned back to the land of her God to find out what He had in store for her next. Her attitude was to submit to God’s lot that He had given her and not to moan about it or to blame anyone for it. Things just happen in life and we have to live through them!
But notice also that Ruth continued to stand by Naomi’s side throughout all of this. She saw the strength and faith that Naomi had in her God and Ruth wanted to be a part of that. She wanted to get to know this God that made such an impact on Naomi’s life. I wonder, when people look at us, do they see an attitude that makes them wonder what it is about the God that we server, or do they just see and attitude that seems to need fixing? We need to take a leaf out of these two women’s lives and aim to be more like them in standing up for our God no matter what comes our way.
Points to Ponder:
How do others see God through you?
Are you a visible witness for God?
