My absolute favorite bible story is Ruth . The most underrated character in that marvelous story is the mother-in-law, Naomi.
Don’t misunderstand me, Ruth is quite a special girl but Naomi now there’s an extraordinary woman. In fact, I sometimes wonder why the book wasn’t named after her instead.
Naomi is wonderful in many ways. I especially admire her because she knows so much about love. In Ruth we see how Naomi has experienced love for her husband, son’s,
friends and even the most challenging love of all, for her
daughter-in-laws. Mere mortals do not always accomplish the task of loving ones daughter-in-laws. (In fact, one of our greatest biblical figures, Rebekah had trouble with that one.) The bonds of love were so strong that Naomi’s daughter-in-laws wished to live with her even after their husbands had died.
Naomi is also a woman who understands a lot about suffering and loss. First, she experiences a terrible famine. She and her family are forced out of the land of Israel by starvation. During this trial she loses her home and her dearest friends. Finally, as if all those losses weren’t enough, her husband and two beloved sons perish. Who, other than Job himself, has suffered more than Naomi?
Remember, the part in the story where Naomi returns to Bethlehem, with Ruth, after being gone for many years? I’m referring to the verse where her friends greet her joyfully now that she has returned to them. Poor Naomi, all she can do is cry. “ I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty…The Lord has dealt harshly with me.” Who among us has not at some time in our miserable lives made the same lament? Where are you God? Why have you forsaken me? Why have you cursed me?
Naomi is a very moving character because she is like all of us. She couldn’t see the big picture. God didn’t curse her. He blessed her and in the grandest way possible. He immortalized her story in the bible. People all over the world have had the pleasure of reading her story and admiring her for more than 2000 years. If that wasn’t enough, God granted her the privilege of being “foster mother” to the grandfather of King David. She had no clue that she was caring for such an important person at the time. No matter how far back Naomi stepped she didn’t have enough perspective to see what her life was really about. If only she could’ve seen her situation from a different angle, how proud and pleased I’m sure she would have been. Don’t you think we are all a little bit like Naomi? We suffer. We don’t understand why. But if we can remain kind and loving through our tribulations, like Naomi, God may grant us numerous blessings.