This morning I was looking through past entries in my journal. I mostly use my journal for jotting down sermon notes and devotionals, as well as any dreams or words of knowledge that God gives me for myself or others. I find it particularly interesting to go back one year and see where I was and maybe (hopefully) see how much I've changed.
Around this time last year, underneath a Sunday message, I had this jotted down....
"The name 'Naomi' has been on my heart for awhile now, and I wasn't sure why until this morning when we got to ministry time [a time in our service where people can go up if they want prayer]. I was praying to God about risk-taking and stepping out [the very point of the message I had just heard!] and He brought up Naomi again. He told me that up till now I've been more of a Naomi than a Ruth; stuck living in a cave, grieving my losses while someone else goes out and gathers sheaves. He's calling me out to be more like Ruth in my boldness to step out and work in His kingdom, but to also maintain the wisdom Naomi had to instruct Ruth on how to do so."
Remember the story of Mary and Martha, and how Mary chose the better part by lingering at Jesus' feet rather than jumping up to help Martha in the kitchen? I think a balance between the two is required of us most days; spending that precious time with our Heavenly Father, while still serving others and doing our little part to further the Kingdom.
The same is true in the case of Naomi and Ruth. We tend to sympathize more with Ruth (and why not? The whole book is named after her, not to mention she's the one who lands herself a husband and a son by the end!), but let's not forget what Naomi can teach us. This is a woman whose worst nightmare came true. She lost her husband and two sons, and was forced to return to her homeland in order to have any hope of surviving on her own. And she was blessed with the company of Ruth, her widowed daughter-in-law who refused to leave her. Ruth gathered sheaves in the fields of their kinsmen-redeemer, Boaz, and long story short, the two got married and blessed Naomi with a grandson to care for.
I'm not sure why, but I always picture them living in a cave when they got to Bethlehem. Maybe I read that somewhere else, but my Bible doesn't say they did. But even if they didn't live in a physical cave, you have to agree that Naomi was dwelling in an emotional one for sure. She even told her friends, "I went out full, but the Lord has brought me back empty" (Ruth 1:21). She stayed in that cave while Ruth went out to keep them fed.
But Naomi still had a purpose. She lovingly advised Ruth when it came to gleaning in Boaz's fields, and kind of played matchmaker in a way (check out her counsel that led to the somewhat-shocking threshing floor proposal in chapter 3!). Although she felt that God had afflicted her (1:21), Naomi still retained His love and wisdom, and allowed those things to manifest themselves in her dealings with Ruth to bless her as well. And because of her faith in the midst of grief and uncertainty, Naomi became the catalyst that led to not only a marriage, but to the restoration of her name and family, as well as the birth of the child Obed who's in the very lineage of Jesus Christ.
So I think it's okay to have a little Naomi in all of us. That part of us may get scared or emotional in times of struggle, but as long as we remain faithful in the One who is guiding us through, the wisdom and love He pours out on us can certainly spill onto others. But don't be afraid of having a little Ruth in you either, since some difficult times also require us to roll up our sleeves and get to work in the fields, all the while receiving counsel from other wise Christians. It's all about balance. Some situations require more Naomi than Ruth, or vice versa. Just don't write Naomi off. All you have to do is read Ruth's story to see she was more important to the outcome than most of us realize!
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