Bitterness: Blaming God for our Trials (Ruth 1:19-22)

3/16/2010 8:40 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                    Focus:  Bitterness: blaming God for our trials

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                        Reference:  Ruth 1:19-22

 

            Message of the verses:  “19 ¶  So they both went until they came to Bethlehem. And when they had come to Bethlehem, all the city was stirred because of them, and the women said, "Is this Naomi?" 20  She said to them, "Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21  "I went out full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the LORD has witnessed against me and the Almighty has afflicted me?" 22  So Naomi returned, and with her Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, who returned from the land of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of barley harvest.”

             I can say one positive thing for Naomi at this point in this story, and that she was honest enough with God to actually blame her problems on Him.  Many people blame circumstances and other things on their troubles, when it is really God that they are blaming and are not honest enough, like Naomi to blame God to his face.

            There was a mistake in her life that she and her husband brought on themselves and they should have sought the council of the Lord before they left, and they should have also prayed through this and sought a promise from the Lord before leaving for Moab, and they also should have sought council from mature believers that they knew before leaving, but they did not allow God to rule in their lives and so He overruled in their lives and now Naomi is bitter and blaming the Lord for her troubles.  She even wants her named changed from Naomi (pleasant) to Mara (bitter).

            Warren Wiersbe points out some of the resources that she still had in her life and the first of these is life itself, something that is easy to forget at certain times of ones life.  She also had opportunities for she was surrounded by friends and family who wanted to help her get through this difficult period of her life.  Naomi had a wonderful daughter-in-law in Ruth who desired to follow the God of Israel in all that He had for her life and Naomi’s life.  Most of all she had the Lord, the God of Israel and His name is mentioned twenty-five times in this book as He is the Chief Actor in this drama.

            I have read a quote from a Scottish preacher name Alexander Whyte from many of Warren Wiersbe’s commentaries on the Bible that has meant a lot to me and he uses it in this section as well:  “The Christian life is a series of new beginnings.”  This is true and Naomi will find this out along with Ruth as this drama unfolds in the final three chapters.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Trust the Lord in every change that comes about in my life even though some of them surely seem unpleasant.  I have to go for a blood test this morning and after seeing what happened to my friend Bruce Baker when he found out that his PSA had gone up which proved to be cancer in his prostate gland and so it is with some consternation that I go to have this done, especially right before we are planning a vacation to Florida for a month.  I must trust the Lord in all of this to see what He has planned for me in my life, and hopefully all will turn out good with this blood test.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1. Trust the Lord for the results of this blood test that I am taking this morning.

 

3/16/2010 9:15 AM