Sweet to Bitter

Most people do not like to be the center of negative attention. Imagine Naomi and Ruth, tired and dusty from the long walk from Moab, surrounded by nosey Bethlehem women.

“Is that Naomi?”

“It can’t be!”

“This woman is old, worn-out.”

“See the bitterness in her face. Naomi would never look like that!”

“Isn’t that a Moabite woman with her?”

“What is she doing with her?”

Finally, when Naomi had heard enough, she responds, “Don’t call me Naomi," she told them. "Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me." Ruth 1:20-21(NIV) Naomi changes her to ‘Mara.’ She no longer wants to be known as ‘pleasant’ or “Merry Sunshine.’ (McGee, Ruth, page 29.)

Naomi knew the name of God but didn’t have a clue about the character of God. She had forgotten that God loved her and had a plan for her life even after her husband and sons died. She continued to look at her past and ignore her present blessings. She dwelled on her losses and not the gifts God had given her: her life, her new start in her hometown, and her precious daughter-in-law. What a waste of time and emotion!

Are you still holding on to your past? Are you overlooking the gifts God has given you? Are you listening to the negative talk? Consider Paul’s example.

“But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13b-14 (NIV)