Emmanuel Baptist Church

In this second message from the book of Ruth, Pastor Mike presents a juxtaposition of how to deal with suffering. On the one hand, you have Naomi who has lost so much: first her husband, then her two sons. And in that pain, she flees to isolation and bitterness and, in turn, is blind to any goodness that is being given to her. On the other hand, you have Ruth who also has lost a husband and has never experienced the joy of motherhood. But in her pain, she doesn’t bail, become bitter, or isolate herself. Rather, she chooses to hunker down in love, even when the person she is loving on is unlovable. And through this little historical vignette, we should not only be able to self-diagnose how we process suffering, but we should also learn how to love well and be loved in return.