A JOURNEY FROM EMPTINESS TO FULFILLMENT - Naomi was very familiar with loss. She had lost her husband and her two sons while dwelling in Moab, where her family had fled due to a famine in Bethlehem. Her heart was broken and filled with grief from the loss of family. But little did she know that, in the midst of her bitterness, God was planning her fulfillment and restoration. In her unmatched loyalty to Naomi, Ruth the Moabite chose the God of Israel, through whom she came to find much grace. In finding that grace, Ruth was blessed and became a great blessing! The years of bitterness and loss came to an end for Naomi! Through grace Ruth meets and they are married and have a child named Obed. This child becomes the father of Jesse, the father of David, and in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Naomi goes from empty to full as her family life is restored to her! You may be able to relate to Naomi, having lost those dearest to you. You may be grieving even as you read this. God can turn things around for you. He can restore all the years that were lost, bringing you into a place of fulfillment and blessing. The story of Ruth expresses the heart of God for all His children — He is the God of redemption, restoration and grace. He desires to fill all the empty places in our lives. Naomi was very familiar with loss. She had lost her husband and her two sons while dwelling in Moab, where her family had fled due to a famine in Bethlehem. Her heart was broken and filled with grief from the loss of family.

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A journey from emptiness to fulfillment

You may be grieving even as you read this. God can turn things around for you. He can restore all the years that were lost, bringing you into a place of fulfillment and blessing.

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Naomi was very familiar with loss. She had lost her husband and her two sons while dwelling in Moab, where her family had fled due to a famine in Bethlehem. Her heart was broken and filled with grief from the loss of family. But little did she know that, in the midst of her bitterness, God was planning her fulfillment and restoration. In her unmatched loyalty to Naomi, Ruth the Moabite chose the God of Israel, through whom she came to find much grace. In finding that grace, Ruth was blessed and became a great blessing! 

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The years of bitterness and loss came to an end for Naomi! Through grace Ruth meets Boaz (her kinsman redeemer), and they are married and have a child named Obed. This child becomes the father of Jesse, the father of David, and in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Naomi goes from empty to full as her family life is restored to her! You may be able to relate to Naomi, having lost those dearest to you. 

Debra Neybert, Training Specialist

Heartbeat International

 

“So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife; and when he went in to her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son.

“Then the women said to Naomi, ‘Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel! And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him.’

“’Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to him. Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, ‘There is a son born to Naomi.’

“And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.” - Ruth 4:14-17

 

The story of Ruth expresses the heart of God for all His children — He is the God of redemption, restoration and grace.

He desires to fill all the empty places in our lives.

As we celebrate Mother’s Day this month, we can all be grateful for the mothers who gave us life.

But for some the day may be bittersweet, perhaps because of the loss a beloved mother or the loss of children.

Naomi was very familiar with loss. She had lost her husband and her two sons while dwelling in Moab, where her family had fled due to a famine in Bethlehem.

There, in a land not her own, Naomi cried, "Do not call me Naomi (which means pleasant); Call me Mara (which means bitter), for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went away full, and the LORD has brought me back empty.” (Ruth 1:20-21a)

Her heart was broken and filled with grief from the loss of family. But little did she know that, in the midst of her bitterness, God was planning her fulfillment and restoration.

When Naomi heard that the Lord had provided food for his people, she decided to return home with Ruth and Orpah, the women her sons married while in Moab.

On the journey home, Naomi insists that the women return to their homeland and their families.

Orpah went back, but Ruth would not be separated from her mother-in-law, saying, “Your people will be my people and your God my God.”

In her unmatched loyalty to Naomi, Ruth the Moabite chose the God of Israel, through whom she came to find much grace. In finding that grace, Ruth was blessed and became a great blessing!

Ruth and Naomi arrive in Bethlehem as the barley harvest was beginning. This would have been during Passover, Israel’s constant reminder and promise of God’s redemption.

Ruth said to Noami, "Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor."

Ruth indeed found favor, as she was led by grace to the field of Boaz, who turns out to be a close relative — a “kinsman redeemer” of Naomi’s family.

Boaz treats Ruth with abundant kindness, allowing her to glean in his fields freely and without fear of harm.

Naomi directs Ruth, in the custom of the day, to humbly go and present herself to Boaz. She does this by lying at his feet during the night.

When Boaz awakens, Ruth requests that he spread the corner of his garment over her.

This was a culturally relevant way to say, “I am a widow. Take me as your wife and fulfill your role as kinsman redeemer.”

The years of bitterness and loss came to an end for Naomi! Through grace Ruth meets Boaz (her kinsman redeemer), and they are married and have a child named Obed.

This child becomes the father of Jesse, the father of David, and in the lineage of Jesus Christ.

Naomi goes from empty to full as her family life is restored to her!

You may be able to relate to Naomi, having lost those dearest to you.

You may be grieving even as you read this.

God can turn things around for you.

He can restore all the years that were lost, bringing you into a place of fulfillment and blessing.

By Debra Neybert, Training Specialist

Heartbeat International is the first network of pro-life pregnancy resource centers in the U.S. and the largest and most expansive in the world. Since 1971, Heartbeat has supported, strengthened and started pregnancy help organizations, including pregnancy medical clinics, pregnancy resource centers,  maternity homes, and adoption agencies all over the world. Currently, Heartbeat serves over 2,800 affiliate locations on all six inhabited continents to provide alternatives to abortion.

We are a nonprofit, interdenominational Christian association of faith-based pregnancy resource centers, medical clinics, maternity homes, and nonprofit adoption agencies endorsed by Christian leaders nationwide.

Heartbeat's Life-Saving Vision...

...is to make abortion unwanted today and unthinkable for future generations.

Heartbeat's Life-Saving Mission...

...is to Reach and Rescue as many lives as possible, around the world, through an effective network of life-affirming pregnancy help, to Renew communities for LIFE.

https://www.heartbeatservices.org/a-journey-from-emptiness-to-fulfillment

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FINDING BEAUTY IN YOUR WINTER SEASON - Seasons exist not only for life on earth, but for our life in the Spirit as well. Winter seems to represent loss, change, and isolation for us, all things we prefer to do without. The cold that drove us indoors was not meant to be conducive to activity, but to intimacy - “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is in the Lord. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit.” - Cold, inclement weather, combined with increased sickness and long, dark days can induce loneliness or depression. We long for sunshine and spring, flowers and warmth, but winter seems unending. What’s true in the natural realm is true also in the spiritual realm. Seasons exist not only for life on earth, but for our life in the Spirit as well. We have times of new beginnings, (springtime), times of busyness and activity (summer), and times of great harvest (fall). But there are also times when God calls us into a winter season, and more often than not, we enter this season reluctantly. Winter seems to represent loss, change, and isolation for us, all things we prefer to do without.

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Finding Beauty in Your Winter Season

Seasons exist not only for life on earth, but for our life in the Spirit as well - winter seems to represent loss, change, and isolation for us, all things we prefer to do without - the cold that drove us indoors was not meant to be conducive to activity, but to intimacy

Deborah Perkins

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is in the Lord. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit.” ~ Jeremiah 17:7-8

It is a rare person who looks forward to the winter season.

Cold, inclement weather, combined with increased sickness and long, dark days can induce loneliness or depression.  

Previously green grass and plants all morph to ugly, drab colors, taking our cheerful outlook with them.

We long for sunshine and spring, flowers and warmth, but winter seems unending.

Yet the Bible says that “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.” (Genesis 8:22, NASB).

In this case, what’s true in the natural realm is true also in the spiritual realm.

Seasons exist not only for life on earth, but for our life in the Spirit as well.

We have times of new beginnings, (springtime), times of busyness and activity (summer), and times of great harvest (fall).

But there are also times when God calls us into a winter season, and more often than not, we enter this season reluctantly.

Winter seems to represent loss, change, and isolation for us, all things we prefer to do without.

Recently, though, God gave me the gift of a winter spent with Him, and this season changed my entire perspective. It all started on a prayer walk I took in the fall.

I was walking along a quiet country lane near my home, at the peak of our New England autumn season.

The air smelled exquisitely crisp and clean, there was stunning, fiery color in the trees all around me, and I was alone except for some birds and squirrels making provision for their nests.

Spiritually, I was in a very fruitful and productive time of my life: active in my church, involved in several ministries, and seeing great answers to prayer.

I had taken this walk alone to seek God about the future, and He answered me in a rather unexpected way.

I had reached a spot where a magnificent, stately old tree stood before me. It was glorious!

The tree trunk’s diameter was roughly 4 feet wide. Its branches reached high above the other trees, fully extended, with gold, yellow, and red-hued leaves all throughout.

I stopped to marvel at its beauty, and the Lord spoke to me in His quiet yet unmistakable voice.

He asked me to observe the tree as representative of the Body of Christ.

He showed me that the base and roots represented Christ, and the branches the many denominations and churches throughout the earth.

All the branches, though different from each other, are part of the same root system.

He said that I had been among these branches, ministering healing in various ways to the people (the “leaves”) I brushed against as the wind of His Spirit moved me.

I had been enjoying a fall “season” spiritually, and loved the beautiful experience of harvest. 

What He asked me to do next was a surprise. He invited me to come back down from the branches, to move deeper into the trunk and root system of the tree.

When I heard this, my first thought was that the trunk was so ugly and barren in contrast!

Why would I want to leave such splendor and activity, only to be lost in a grey place lacking any real distinction?

Suddenly ashamed of myself, I realized that this was exactly what was said about Christ:

“For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of parched ground; He had no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.” - (Isaiah 53:2, NASB)

God was asking me to enter into a winter season of intimacy with His Son, and I found myself guilty of resisting because the idea seemed so unattractive!

You see, I was not “burnt out” from ministry at the time, a condition that often requires believers to take a step back and regroup.

There was no glaring sin in my life that needed to be dealt with, nor had I experienced any loss or setback which might necessitate my relinquishing responsibilities for a while. This was simply an invitation.

What I didn’t know then was how essential and life-changing this winter season would be for me.

In retrospect, I saw that He gave me this experience for the purpose of knowing Him better and replacing my dread of winter with faith-filled expectations.

I didn’t know how vital the winter renewal process was for a tree.

Through study, I learned that if a tree is denied its natural dormant stage, its lifespan is greatly reduced. 

Here was the principle of a Sabbath-rest, in living color!

I learned that a tree’s height and stationary location are both dangerous factors in winter, since it is more exposed to cold and cannot move to hibernate as animals can.

In order to survive, the tree stops making food (photosynthesis, or the process of converting energy from the sun into chemical sugars or saps), and turns inward.

Moisture must be drawn from underground roots to protect the tree from winter drought. If a tree loses too much water, cells are destroyed.

As winter approached, I was taking another walk through the woods and the Lord stopped me again, this time to observe a barren tree.

It was completely devoid of leaves, a spindly, grey structure with no apparent growth.

This time, He drew upon what I had learned about trees to instruct me: without the water of the Word, a believer will not survive the winter season.

As a gardener mulches or covers his trees to preserve warmth and moisture, so believers must immerse themselves in Christ and His Word in order to preserve and renew themselves.

This is not a time to serve (or in the case of the tree, to create food or expend energy), but a time of intimacy with Him.

By drawing upon the pure water of the Spirit, we sustain ourselves until springtime arrives.

The apostle Paul writes in Romans 11:18, “… remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.” 

Paul is speaking of the Jews here, but it is equally true of Christ, who is the basis and support of our faith.

In Revelation 5:5 22:16, Jesus is called the “Root of David.” 

In the very first recorded speech of John the Baptist (Matthew 3:10), we hear him saying, “The axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore every good tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” 

And  Ezekiel 47:12 give us a prophetic picture of the believer drawing water from the river of life: “Their leaves will not wither and their fruit will not fail. They will bear every month because their water flows from the sanctuary, and their fruit will be for food and their leaves for healing.”

I spent my winter season digging deep into the water of His Word, and I not only survived but also enjoyed the process!

I found that winter, to Christ, is a little bit like sitting by a warm fire with your beloved; it is an enjoyable time of reconnecting.

The cold that drove us indoors was not meant to be conducive to activity, but to intimacy.

Our conversations grew longer, our understanding was deepened, and our love for one another grew.

We made plans for the future, much like a gardener would plan for spring.

And eventually, we itched to be outside again, sharing in the delight of warm springtime and celebrating like the lovers in the Song of Songs.

The rest from hard labor rejuvenated us, and we were ready again to emerge into the new things God had prepared for us.

I would not trade this experience with Him for anything, and can honestly say that I look forward to each and every spiritual season now, especially winter.

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is in the Lord. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit.” ~ Jeremiah 17:7-8

Deborah Perkins is a seasoned prophetic writer, teacher, and Christian leader with more than 35 years of ministry experience across denominations.  Her passion is to communicate God's heart to his people, empowering them to build the kingdom of God.
At God's request in 2013, she founded His Inscriptions, an online ministry devoted to helping people worldwide “Discover Life-Giving Communication with God.” Through her website, mentoring courses, and a weekly blog, Deborah offers discipleship to those who want to grow their relationship with God. Published books on Amazon include: Life-Giving Prayer,  How to Inherit Your Spiritual Promises, and Why Pray? Reasons to Reach for God.
A Wellesley College graduate, Deborah lives in New England with her husband, three wonderful children, one cat and a coop full of chickens. Deborah writes regularly for SpiritFuel, Bible Gateway, Tyndale House Publishing, and LivingBetter50. Learn more about Deborah or order her books on her Amazon author page.
His Inscriptions is a non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)3 organization, and receives support through the donations of readers and partners like you. To sow a financial seed, ​click here.

https://www.hisinscriptions.com/finding-beauty-in-your-winter-season.html#/

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