Ruth 1:20-21 “Don’t call me Naomi,” she told them. “Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The Lord has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.”

My recommendation to you is to read the Book of Ruth in one sitting. In Chapter One, we see that grief, loss, deprivation, and stress have all taken a toll on Naomi’s spirit. She speaks as one who has been battered by the circumstances of her life. Her husband Elimelech had taken her and their two sons Mahlon and Kilion from their home in Bethlehem to the country of Moab to avoid the effects of a famine. After a while Elimelech died and her sons married two Moabite women Orpah and Ruth. After they had lived there ten years the two sons died. What a state of affairs! Since her family had been refugees in Moab it is likely that their resources were depleted by this time. So Naomi’s decision to return to her native land and her instruction to Orpah and Ruth to go home to their mothers make perfect sense. Eventually Orpah stayed behind but Ruth refused to leave Naomi’s side and returned to Bethlehem with her. Wouldn’t every woman want a daughter-in-law like Ruth!

When Naomi and Ruth arrived in Bethlehem the town is abuzz with excitement to welcome them. Naomi however has changed. The Naomi they knew was true to her name: “Pleasant”. This Naomi wants them to call her Mara: “Bitter” because as she saw it “The Lord has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.”

How human! Just like us, in her pain she blames it all on God. Grief, loss and deprivation will do that to you. Even as believers, we don’t take note of what we are saying. How do we say “The Almighty” and then fail to comprehend all that the name implies? It means the “All Sufficient One.” He is the one who nourishes, supplies and sustains, abundantly. He will make a way! But your enemy, the devil, would have you hold your head down in gloom, unable to see beyond your toes, rather than see you with your head up, hands raised, calling on The Almighty for his help in your time of need.