Knowing where to go in our weakness for the strength we need is important. But knowing where to find Hope when all seems lost and we are struggling with putting one foot ahead of the other, that is critical. Realizing where to find that source of hope takes us back to asking the One who alone knows our needs.
It seems Naomi didn’t uproot right away after her husband’s death. It’s usually advisable when we become widows not to make any big changes right away. She was alone, but she had her two sons to care for. Besides, these young men must’ve soon been of marrying age because we read they both married local gals from Moab. Life went on for ten years, yet no grandchildren came along. But soon life dealt two more blows to Naomi when both of her sons, Mahlon and Chilion, died. She had been alone before, but this was grief multiplied. Now she and both of her daughters-in-law, Ruth and Orpah were widows and that meant there would be no one to provide for them. Life was hopeless now. News from Judah had filtered over to Moab and she’d heard that the famine was over back home. There was food once again and that meant hope. She would pack up and return home. Orpah is convinced to return to her family, but Ruth clings to Naomi, following that same hope. So Naomi now sets out with a broken heart for Bethlehem in Judah, the home she’d left with Elimelech so many years before. I’d think it would be hard for her, returning to the area that would trigger so many memories, good and bad. I’m sure she was ambushed with memories recalling those hungry days that made Elimelech decide to do the unthinkable: to pull up, pack up, and go to live in the land of the idol-worshipping enemies of God’s people. They had decided to find their own source of hope. Yes, trying to step ahead of God’s answers by taking control of a situation and doing what we believe is a solution to a problem rarely works what’s best. But I must never forget that God is in this story. He had a plan. There was hope.
In loss when all is so different, so changed, and so unfamiliar, we can begin to feel there is no hope. It affects our confidence. Out of our comfort zone, we are unsure of what life holds for us now. When there’s an expectation or yearning for yesterday and the familiar, we might find ourselves losing faith. We may begin to question God’s goodness and take up the lament of ‘Why?” as we seek answers out of our reach. Thankfully we have a Source to Whom we can come for the hope and the confidence we need. Like Naomi deciding to return home, if loss finds us out of touch with the Savior, He awaits us with open arms to declare hope for us through Him. Come back. There’s hope in trusting the One Who knows our tomorrows.
Thoughts of hopelessness test the ballast of our “ship”. Storms test anchors and a captain needs to know if it will hold secure in the storm. In Hebrews 6:18, we are reminded of the encouragement of hope: “We have this hope as an anchor of the soul…” (CSB) This hope is in the Almighty, all-knowing, all-seeing, unchangeable God of angel armies. This isn’t an “I hope so”, but this an “I know so”. The storms of grief may roll in, but we know the One who spoke “Peace be still” to the angry sea, and it was calm. In Psalm 93:4, we read, “Mightier than the thunder of the great water, mightier than the breakers of the sea---the Lord on high is mighty.” (NIV) Even amid the roar of memories and loneliness that threaten our hope and confidence, the Lord is mightier. Take those moments to the Lord. This is a hope we can lean into with our trust, calling out to Him for every need. He knows, He hears, He sees. Hebrews 10:35 says, “Therefore do now throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.” (ESV) Stay the course. He will never leave nor forsake us and will see us safely into the harbor of Heaven. There will be a great reward.
Jeremiah shares the Lord’s word to him in Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a hope and a future.” Just as God knew what lay before the exiled people of Israel, He still today knows our path and wants to give us a hope and a future in following Him. Romans 8:28 tells us “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” (ESV) So we can be assured that the life transitions like loss and the grief that comes with it can be part of what God is purposing in our lives. He is working in us, in our circumstances, and in our tomorrows. It’s likely not what we would have asked for, but these purposes are our Sovereign Lord’s way. “I know the plans,” He says. He alone knows the “Why”. These divine purposes are redesigning our hearts and priorities and bringing us into the hope and the future He has planned. This pathway to a new hope and future is putting our heart in a new place of trust and what we deem to be important. He knows, and we can leave it with Him.
It's reassuring to be reminded of the hope we have in our faithful God. So many times, we can look back over our life and marvel at the myriad ways the Lord has been good to us. There were blessings, provisions, safety, and security we enjoyed throughout our past. Lamentations 3:21-23 says, “Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Even after becoming a widow, I can look back and see how faithful God was. I could wonder: is this loss still part of His faithfulness? At first, it was hard to grasp this, but as I began to recount the many ways God’s love and faithfulness had sustained us, I had to step out on faith in Him and say, “Yes, and this, too.” I knew He was for me, not against me, and amid the pangs of loss, I knew His faithfulness was great and would be great, into the future I could not yet even think of. And yes, that was hope I could hold onto. And I can still return to that expectancy, even today when the Enemy’s lies try an attack. Like Ruth and Naomi setting out for their trip to Judah, walking along that dusty road, they likely had hope for what would was ahead. God would provide. Because of God’s faithfulness, because He does not change, we still can rely on this hope. Jeremiah states that he calls to mind God’s great love and compassion, and so he has hope. That’s a hope we can look back through the years and remember like Jeremiah. Even loss is no match for the faithfulness of God and what He can do. Let that hope reassure us, giving us confidence to move forward where He leads.
Another scripture that has given me a portion of hope in this season of entering widowhood is Romans 12:12, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Looking beyond where I am sitting in my current situation to how can I find joy here, but it’s only through gratitude I can see that joy is possible. To be thankful for the blessings God provided over the years of being “wife” and “us”, then realizing God’s plan for me is still actively alive, gives joy. The same part of my brain that wants to be anxious can’t do both anxiety and gratitude, so I must choose thankful and find the peace through joy in all that the Lord is doing. As Ruth and Naomi’s footsteps brought them closer to Bethlehem, I wonder if they talked of the hope before them. They had experienced distress and tribulation in becoming widows. These times change us. Pastor Greg Moore of Top Hand Cowboy Church here in Texas stated that these high watermark life events force us to make choices: will I choose to trust the Lord and turn to Him, or will I turn away to my own devices? When we can be patient in these distressing times, waiting on the Lord and trusting Him to lead us, He will provide the comfort, peace, and strength we desperately need. And that makes us hopeful. Hopeful that tomorrow will be better. The last phrase of this scripture says to be constant in prayer. When we persevere in bringing our needs to Him, He sees our persistence as we steadfastly continue to trust that His Way is best, and He will make a way. Just like He did for Ruth and Naomi, He will provide in Ephesians 3:20 style. “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.” (ESV) Those two widows, walking the long dusty road back to the fields of Bethlehem in time for barley harvest have no idea what lies ahead. But God does. There is hope ahead, hope for everyone, but only the Lord knows what lies ahead. As He knew and led these widows, He will lead us as well.
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Widow's Journal
A New Path, A New Purpose
by Kat Timonen
2. A Measure of Hope
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