Key scripture – “Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelt there about ten years. Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband.” (Ruth 1:3-5).

Naomi’s life was going well. A great husband. Two fine sons who had two wonderful wives. Then the unthinkable happened. Her husband died. A little time later both her sons died. Naomi and her daughter-in-laws find themselves in the midst of shattered dreams. They were probably thinking, “This isn’t how life is supposed to be.”

How did Naomi react to her situation? “…for it grieves me very much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me!” (Ruth1:13). Ah, we see her true feelings about the situation. “How could a loving God let this happen?!” Then she said, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?” (Ruth1:20-21).

After all this happened, Naomi told everyone to call her Mara, which means bitter. She knew where she was, she was bitter toward God. She was thinking, “How can I possibly reconcile this?! No life insurance. No pension. No widow’s fund. What is going to happen to me and my daughters?” Naomi could not see with her eyes what The Lord was doing so she got bitter and started complaining, whining, and griping. Do you do that too? If things are not going as you planned do you think God has deserted you? Do you get bitter and start complaining, whining and griping? Do you have a pity party?

Naomi and one of her daughter-in-laws, Ruth, move to a community where some of her relatives lived. Ruth goes out to work in the fields to put food on the table and she ends up working in the field of a wealthy farmer named Boaz. When Ruth tells Naomi where she is working, the first ray of hope penetrates Naomi’s bitter heart. Even she can recognize that this is the hand of God because with God there are no coincidences and there is no such thing as luck or chance. Ruth told her mother-in-law where she had worked, and said, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz. Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, ‘Blessed be he of the Lord, who has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!’” (Ruth 2:19-20).

Hebrew custom was for the kin who was next in line to care for the widow in the family. Boaz was going to be this man. He would eventually marry Ruth. She would bare a son, Obed. He would be the father of Jesse, who was the father of David, and this is the lineage that Jesus came from.

Like Ruth and Naomi, your shattered dreams will often lead to a world-impacting destiny. But getting there is often a process where you must work through honest feelings before you can see the God who redeems even the most devastating shattered dream.

If your dreams have been shattered, get on your knees and talk to God about it. Cling to Him, cry out to Him, cry with Him, and be honest with Him about your feelings. He wants to hear from you, He is waiting to hear from you, He loves you.

Pray this – Our Precious Heavenly Father, when I read the story of Naomi, I realize that she spoke like I have spoken, when I have isolated Your ways and not considered them as parts of the whole. All Your ways are ways of pleasantness and Your paths are peace, when they are not looked at separately from the plans that You have for my life. You have told me that the plans You have for me are “plans for welfare and not for evil,” to give me “a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11). Forgive me for the times when I have jumped to conclusions about what was going on before Your entire plan has been allowed to work itself out in my life. How grieved You must be, when You are lovingly doing what is best for me, and all You hear from me are words of griping, whining, murmuring and complaining. Remove the veil from my eyes and help me to see all the good things and the blessings in my life. Help me to always have an attitude of gratitude, and instead of focusing on the wind and the waves, I will put my focus back on Jesus because even the wind and waves know that He is in control. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.