Women of the Bible: Naomi

Starting today, we will feature instrumental women from the Bible once a month. Women's ministry and self-worth has always been an area that I've been passionately interested in pursuing. We can find a lot of similarities to fellow females who've faced tragedy, doubted God, and even turned away from His will, like one female in particular, who we will be studying today. Before we start, I want this to be clear:

Don't be overwhelmed or intimidated by the Bible. You might feel like you don't know where to start (which we can get into later). Think of each character as a mentor or friend you can learn from. These are people who've experienced hard times and life moments just like you and me. The best part is, we can learn from their experiences. You may have seen this quote before, but I think it's so encouraging because it shows how God can use any one of us to do His work:

"Jacob was a cheater, Peter had a temper, David had an affair, Noah was a drunk, Jonah ran from God, Paul was a murderer, Gideon was insecure, Miriam was a gossip, Martha was a worrier, Thomas was a doubter, Sara was impatient, Elijah was moody, Moses stuttered, Zaccheus was short, Abraham was old, Lazarus was dead."

How cool is that?

He doesn't use "perfect" or "shiny" people to live out His will. He uses real people with real problems who make real mistakes.

Our first mentor/friend we're going to be learning from is Naomi from the book of Ruth. If you haven't already, I'd encourage you to read Ruth in the Old Testament (Don't worry-I had to look in the front of my Bible as well to find out what books it was between.) Brief Summary: A famine hit Bethlehem, which made Naomi encourage her husband Elimelech and two sons to move to Moab to get some food. They didn't trust God to protect them. While they are there for ten years, their sons married two Moabite women, Ruth and Orpah (Winfrey? Sorry...). They were doing fine until Elimelech and his two sons died. Naomi, feeling really bitter towards God, was given word that the Lord supplied food in Bethlehem and was ready to return. Naomi begs for Ruth and Orpah to stay behind because it's their home and this is where their own families live. Orpah stays in Moab but Ruth comes along to be an aid to her mother-in-law. She literally pledges her devotion to Naomi:

Ruth 1:16-17: "But Ruth replied "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me."

Ruth's stubborn attitude pays off and Naomi lets her stay.

In Bethlehem, Naomi is feeling down and Ruth goes to work in the barley fields. Ruth meets a godly man (who happens to be swimming in cash) named Boaz. He ends up liking her. Boaz turns out to also be a relative of Naomi's late husband (what a coincidence).

Naomi found out about Boaz and how great he was so she creates a plan to have Ruth make him her husband. The feelings ended up being mutual and he tells Ruth that he would love to marry her.

After they get married, they end up having a son. Not only that, but they give their son, named Obed, to Naomi.

Ruth 4:16-17: "Then Naomi took the child, laid him in her lap and cared for him. The women living there said, "Naomi has a son." And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David." *Side note: What's cool is that this means that Obed was the grandfather of King David.

Knowing the story, this is what we can learn from our friend Naomi (based off of Calvary Chapel's teachings):

1.) When we leave God, He doesn't leave us.

Can you imagine the pain Naomi felt when her husband and two sons had passed away? She felt that God had turned against her and her heart had grown hard.

Ruth 1:13: "...it is more bitter for me than for you, because the Lord's hand has gone out against me!"

All of us have gone through a time where we didn't understand God's plan. Sadly, we often think our plan is better than His! When our plans for our lives don't align with His, we can become bitter and abandon His path for our own.

The greatest promise of His is that He will never leave us even if we leave Him. Let that soak in. No matter how long you've traveled in a different direction, He is waiting there for you to return with open arms.

2.) God knows what we need.

Naomi being the only survivor out of her family back then was a big deal. It made her future seem very bleak because women strongly depended on men to take care of them. There was a high chance she could starve. Once Naomi returned to Bethlehem with Ruth, they were beyond blessed through Boaz.

How often have we worried about financial situations, whether or not we'll find a significant other, a job, etc.? God knows what we're dealing with and how we're feeling. God can provide for us in ways we can never imagine. We need to trust that He has our best interest and will provide for us exactly what we need like he did with Naomi. 3.) Great things happen when we return to the Lord.

The greatest day in Naomi's life was when she turned from Moab and came back to Bethlehem. Never in Naomi's wildest dreams would she believe she would end up having another son to one day take care of her!

God's favor comes the very instant we return back to Him.

My prayer today: For you and I to remain faithful that God has chosen the best path for our lives.

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