Ruth 1:20 “Don’t call me Naomi,” she told them. “Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter.
Hebrew names were not just the identity of the person but there was history behind the name. The name ‘Naomi’ means “pleasantness” or “lovely” but a series of bad decisions made Naomi dislike the sound of her name. Her life and her name did not sync. Naomi built an ideal family and they decided to migrate to Moab due to the economic crisis in Bethlehem. Moab was a cursed immoral habitation that the Jews were prohibited to go to. One bad decision led to another and she lost her husband and her boys in Moab. Moab means a land just short of the Promised Land. When Naomi stepped outside the Promised Land, she lost her family, fortune and favour. However, her decision to reverse her mistakes got her back on the list of “God’s Golden Girls”. Naomi realized that God’s protection was missing outside the Promised Land, hence she decided to return back to Bethlehem.
Though Naomi wandered away from God’s command, she must have been an exceptional mother-in-law. She had imparted her faith to her daughter-in-laws. For the Moabite daughter-in-laws to follow the mother-in-law, Naomi must have been remarkably genuine and loving. Orpah returned back to her parents as Naomi urged her but Ruth clung onto her. As much as Ruth’s decision must be applauded, the foundation of love laid by Naomi calls for a Nobel Prize.
God qualifies the disqualified as God’s Golden Girls:
1. Lead: The same Naomi who misled her family in Moab, led Ruth into the Promised Land. Naomi is esteemed even today as she reversed her wrong decisions. Not all of our decisions are right. No matter how level-headed we are, we would all stumble one way or the other. When stumped by wrong choices, make a reverse turn. Don’t let one wrong decision nail you to failure for the rest of your life. Pick up what is left and get back to the cross. Naomi led by example. Lead by example.
2. Live: Naomi lost everything. She lost her people, possession and prestige. She was stripped to nothing before she returned. All she had was a Moabite daughter-in-law. However when the embittered Naomi stopped complaining about what she lost and started cherishing the daughter-in-law she had, God reversed her status. Naomi’s exemplary life to find a home for her daughter-in-law,reversed her ruined estate. Live exemplary lives.
- Love: Love multiplies when it is divided.”Love is the only thing that multiplies by division” – Ralph Giles. Naomi’s love for her daughter-in-law was testified by those who witnessed Ruth’s compassion and care for her mother-in-law. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth (Ruth 4:15b). True love will never return empty. It will snowball, gather mass and multiply cumulatively before it returns. Invest love and harvest affection.
Those who reverse their past mistakes and reinvest into righteousness will qualify to be God’s Golden Girls/Guys.
Ruth 4:17 The women living there said, “Naomi has a son!” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, I lay my broken decisions, wrong connections and incorrect choices at your feet . Help me to reverse my past to reinvest into a promising future. Amen.
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