The answer to the decision.

Day 10

Ruth 1:20-21

She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi, when the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?”

I have two dear friends who have endured unimaginable losses recently. One lost her only child, who was only seventeen. The other one lost her mother suddenly and unexpectedly, the only family she had left. It is heartbreaking to hear their stories. They both are grieving in different ways. One is angry at God and has blamed him for taking her mother from her, even though she had asked him not to, and He knew she was all she had left. The other one has decided to honor her child and accept God’s decision, knowing that in his sovereignty, God is still in control. She has clung to the hope that he is now in the arms of the Lord, and even though the circumstances of his death were quite painful, she is using her loss and her grief to help others.

But regardless of the response of these two lovely women, the truth is that both their loved ones are now resting in the arms of the Lord. That will not change, but they both have to endure and overcome the grieving process in their own way and in their own time. Whichever way they decide to do it, the only ones affected are themselves and those around them.

Naomi knew God. Yet, ironically, she still blamed him. Good people do that sometimes. It is easier to face either the consequences of their own behavior or simply accept a fact of life. We are born, we live, and then we die. We just don’t have control over the last one. Therein lies the problem: control. The good news is that God is the most patient father in the world, and even as he sees our angry fist in his face, he still smiles patiently and lovingly; he waits for our anger to subside so he can pick us up in his ever-loving arms and comfort us. He gives us the peace that surpasses all understanding, and even though the loss seems senseless, we can still experience that peace and be soothed by the oil of his healing.

It takes some longer than others. Some get it immediately. Unfortunately, others never do. Mara. Bitterness. Naomi was a strong, determined woman. But in a moment of grief and weakness, she blamed God. It is easy to make him our scapegoat. Job did it, and it took a while before he could say, “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you” (Job 42:5).

Naomi did not stay Mara for long. God proved to her that he could still save even in the midst of the worst of circumstances.

Are you a Naomi or a Mara? Have you tried to blame God for your troubles, whether of your own doing or simply because things happen, good and bad to the good and the bad? Don’t extend the process. The longer you stay mad at God, the less time you have to enjoy his goodness and his blessings. Bitterness eats at the bones and is not a good place to be. #getittogethergirl Hurt people hurt, but blessed people bless.

Father, I give you my pain. I don’t understand it. Maybe I will someday. Or not. Regardless, I don’t want to be Mara. Help me use my pain for the benefit of others who might be going through something similar. Don’t let it go to waste. Heal me, comfort me. Protect me. Use me. In Jesus’ name, amen.

My reflections:

“I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

John 10:10