Gleaning Leads to Meaning

UV 1012/10,000 Gleaning Leads to Meaning I went out full, and the LORD hath brought me home again empty: why then call ye me Naomi, seeing the LORD hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me? Ruth 1 v 21 Naomi and her husband Elimelech of Bethlehem in Judah had moved to Moab in a time of famine in their native place. They had two sons. But Naomi lost in quick succession her husband and her two sons. She was now returning home to Bethlehem emptied of all hope, full of pain and sorrow. She asked her two widowed daughters-in-law to leave her and return to their own homes. The name Naomi means “ beautiful,pleasant, delightful” but she felt that the witness or hard evidence of her life was that God had allowed her to be depressed, empty, barren and stripped of all fruit and every leaf of hope. She felt that she should be called “ Mara” or very bitter, cursed or empty. Ruth however proved her faithfulness by vowing to remain with Naomi though marital vows had committed her only to the point of death of her spouse. She said, “ Your people shall be my people and your God shall be my God.” On account of the faith of Ruth, God caused the barren tree to blossom again. On the counsel of Naomi, she went to the fields of her “kinsman-redeemer” Boaz to glean for barley. She won the favour and love of Boaz and eventually married him and bore Obed the ancestor of King David and much later, the Messiah Jesus. Today, the Lord is calling the faithful, afflicted, spiritually hungry and needy to glean His nourishing grains of truth in the fields of God, namely, scripture. Then we will be blessed like Naomi, Boaz and Ruth to be the forebears of a royal lineage. When we are loyal to God, He blesses us and ours to be royal. The other day we witnessed a rare happening. There was a dead coconut tree whose top was cut off and it was but a dead stump. But suddenly we found a large company of parrots descended on the dead stump of the coconut tree and either fluttered over it or landed on the flat top or held on to the sides. The Lord was conveying a message that He can bring life, hope and fulfillment of hope even to a dead stump. Indeed, gleaning the uni-verse brings meaning into our otherwise barren and useless lives. He will make us fruitful and useful. Unlike what Solomon wrote in the book of Ecclesiastes, nothing we speak or do will be vain. Even when we are afflicted, we should not give up on our hope or faith. Our afflictions should make us better and not bitter. It is a sign that the Lord has chosen us as a special vehicle to deliver His purpose, power and blessing. Noah, Daniel and Job faced huge afflictions but the Lord made their lives a model and a message forever. The reason why the Lord has to afflict human beings is that when left to ourselves, we will be so full of ourselves, our plans, our desires and our thoughts that we do not have any space or time for the Lord. When He afflicts us, the Holy Spirit will work powerfully and revive us by His power and make our lives eventually beautiful, delightful and pleasant. Prateep V Philip