Meat for the Hungry

Ruth 1:19-22: It was April and the beginning of barley harvest when Naomi, with Ruth, returned to Bethlehem.  The whole city was excited. They hadn’t seen Naomi in years and the women of Bethlehem almost didn’t recognize her. So, they asked, “Is this Naomi?” Over time, everyone changes, but Naomi’s grief had greatly altered her countenance. Her face did not express the pleasant, delightful and lovely person she was when she left.  Quickly Naomi retorted, “…Do not call me Naomi, call me Mara [meaning bitterness], for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?”

Once again, evil rears its ugly head and we ask why. Why would anyone rig such vicious bombs? The intent was clear. They did it first to slaughter and maim. Bombs exploding at the finish line of the Boston Marathon were sure to take lives and cause optimal damage. What the second reason was we can only hope to learn. But will discovering their motive prevent this type of evil? With citizens and survivors reeling from the bombing, two days later a fertilizer plant explosion blasted Waco, Texas, killing even more. Now in its deafening echo, we see destroyed homes, altered landscape, and people forever changed. As if these two were not enough, we also received reports of dangerous flooding in the Mid West. Tragedy, catastrophe, and natural disaster all in one week and this is only in our country. Daily devastating news from around the world pummels our heart. Pain, sadness and fear secure a stranglehold that only God can break.