At church, we are starting a new series on the book of Ruth. The first message was titled “Bravery in Brokenness” and the pastor talked about chapter 1 only. If you need a refresher on the story of Ruth, it’s a wonderful account of how God is providential in His timing and how He provides for His people in unexpected ways, even in the midst of tragedy. In Chapter 1, see a family of 6 (husband, wife, 2 sons and 2 daughters-in-law) experience great devastation as all 3 men in the family die. The wife, Naomi, is left with her daughters-in-law, Orpah and Ruth. Naomi decides to leave the foreign land she moved to with her husband and sons, and return back to Bethlehem; Orpah stays behind but Ruth goes with Naomi. Once back in Bethlehem, the Bible says that everyone was talking about Naomi and she even told everyone to call her Mara as it means bitter; that God dealt severely with her. And that’s where Chapter 1 ends.

Our pastor pointed out that even in Naomi’s brokenness and devastation, she made brave decisions. She decided to return home, even though it was a physical journey to do so. She made the decision to go back to her people after being away for a long time and when she arrived, everyone was talking about her (probably not the best feeling, especially while she was grieving the loss of her family). She made the decision to allow Ruth to come with her and not to be alone (I think Satan likes it when we are isolated and don't allow people in during trying times).

The truth is that God calls His people to be brave in light of broken and hard situations. To make hard decisions and to trust that He will show up in ways that only He can. Some days this truth is easy to see and therefore easy to believe. Other days it can feel like God is choosing to step aside and let us be in our brokenness. However, the truth is that God promises to never leave or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6). May we claim that truth today and hold tightly to it.

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