And they took them wives of the women of Moab. The name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth, and they dwelled there about ten years. Ruth 1:4
The book of Ruth is a story of God’s overruling of man’s foolishness and faithlessness. Elimelech had gone to the land of Moab for a good reason, naturally speaking. He wanted to feed his family. But instead of trusting God, he launched his own plan. As a result, he lost his life, and the lives of his sons. It must have broken Naomi’s heart to see her boys take wives from Moab. The hope of every mother in Israel was that the Lord would bring forth His Redeemer from her family. She saw that the hope of that was gone when her sons married outside of Israel. Undoubtedly she blamed herself for being part of the departure from Israel. But the blow was no less painful. As far as she knew, her Gentile daughters-in-law could never be part of God’s purposes. And after her sons died, Naomi’s loss of hope was absolute. No wonder she renamed herself Marah – bitterness.
Despite her disappointment, Naomi did not reject her daughters-in-law. Their bond with her appears to have been deep and genuine. She loved them and desired all the best for them. She did what she could for them. If Naomi could have looked forward several years and seen Ruth’s marriage to Boaz, how much different her outlook would have been. Could she have seen ahead several generations, she would have rejoiced at David’s rise to the throne, or a millennium beyond that, she would have exulted at the appearance of David’s greater Son.
We can lose hope, too, failing to see how God can bring blessing out of the mess where we find ourselves. Let us be like Naomi, even in dark circumstances, never give up on Godliness and reliance on the Almighty. God can surely bless, beyond our ability to see or expect. We will make mistakes. But God is so kind. In all our failures, He still finds ways to bless us.
You cannot know what blessings God has for you tomorrow. But you can know His guidance for your footsteps today. -Jim MacIntosh