What We Can Learn From Naomi

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April 21, 2013
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Ruth 1: 20 – 21, NLT: ““Don’t call me Naomi,” she responded. “Instead, call me Mara,^[a] for the Almighty has made life very bitter for me. ²¹I went away full, but the Lord has brought me home empty. Why call me Naomi when the Lord has caused me to suffer^[b] and the Almighty has sent such tragedy upon me?””

Grief has a way of making even the wisest woman erratic and at the mercy of her emotions. Shock, despair, and hopelessness can overtake us when we cannot cope with grief. We secretly think life will not get better and there is no point in going on. Then our will breaks down and we don’t go on.

I think this is exactly where Naomi was. She still had Ruth, but was so overwhelmed by her losses that she discounted Ruth’s presence in her life.

This one’s for my single sisters in Christ. Sometimes your focus is in the wrong place. Sometimes you’re still focusing on men (fathers, male relatives, bosses, ex-husbands, ex-boyfriends) who rejected, hurt, abandoned or mistreated you; so you can’t see the men in your life who CAN and WILL be a blessing to you.

But Jesus died so you could live a REAL LIFE. And that includes one where you marry and live with the man God designed just for you. Don’t focus on the men who have proven they don’t want to be a part of your life. The best lesson we can learn from Ruth is to look beyond what you lost and focus on what you still have. If Naomi hadn’t lost “everything” she never would have been able to mentor and guide Ruth in the way God wanted her to go.

Focus on believing there are men who do want a good woman. Then focus on chasing after God. It’s the winning combination to finding the path where you meet the man God has for you.

After a series of baffling life challenges, narrowly missing the tragic tsunami of 2011 in Japan, and a near-death experience, Afi (pronounced Ah-fee) had a wake-up call. Since then she’s been chasing after God and His purpose for her life. Now she loves to make God’s Word “come to life” by blogging and combining her artwork with scriptures. If you are a single, Christian woman who needs encouragement on your journey to Mr. Right, you can keep in contact with Afi by subscribing to Author of Faith’s e-Newsletter below.