We have all heard a host of mother in law jokes, haven’t we? usually pointing to an irrational, pushy and dominating person; a relationship that we would rather run from than marry into. Like:

But today’s story is quite the opposite. This is a family’s story of fear and famine, of love and longing, of promise and protection. Our story takes place in Bethlehem where Naomi and her husband lived with their two sons.

On this particular day it was a hot and dusty day in this desert country. The wind was blowing so hard that the sand covered Naomi’s kitchen work space. In a way, it didn’t really matter. She wasn’t really cooking; foraging would be a better name for it. For the 5^th straight week there were no crops brought to the market. She could not remember the last time it rained in their village. Last week one neighbor brought apricots for everyone, but now those trees were bare. A famine had been declared by the town leaders and people were leaving town in search of food.

Naomi worried about her husband. He looked so much older lately. He felt helpless in his inability to provide food for his family. He had no answers for his boys. They prayed everyday for food but things had only gotten worse. It seemed that God was either unaware of their situation or simply did not care. Yesterday the markets closed when the hot winds began to swirl the sand, stinging their legs and burning their eyes.

That morning Naomi wiped her brow as she and her husband sat down in their kitchen. They looked at each other in desperation and love. What would they do? They had two sons to feed. Everywhere the dusty roads were filled with donkeys carrying their owner’s belongings. Naomi longed for a cool bath but even the water was filled with dust.

Naomi and Elimilech had been married right here in Bethlehem. They had raised their nearly grown sons here. Their marriage and their family were there greatest possessions. As they looked around the tent they reminisced about all that had happened here. So many memories. They even treasured the sorrows they shared, as they had brought them ever closer.

Most of their friends belonged to the same synagogue. It was such a place of sanctity them. It was there that they shared meals and grown up together in their faith. They read the Torah and discussed what God would want them to do. Their faith was much more than a discussion or class. It was where they discovered God within them, calling them, loving them, leading them. How could they leave all this? But leave they must or they would die.

So the next day, after packing what they could carry and drag behind them, Naomi, her husband and 2 sons headed out for Moab, a land that had food. It was a difficult trip both physically and emotionally. As they walked hand in hand, they promised each other as soon as it was possible, they would return to Israel.

Upon their arrival in Moab, they set up their tent next to many others they did not know. Naomi set about making the tent look like home. Her husband found work and the boys found some friends. It was lonely at first but there was food for their family and down deep Naomi knew that God was in this place too. She even began to think they had been spared in coming to this place. Maybe their prayers for relief had been answered after all.

No sooner had they gotten settled, found work, felt full for the first time in months, Naomi’s husband died quite suddenly, and she found herself left in a strange country with her two sons.

Her emotions confused her. At first she was shocked and grief stricken. But then she became quite angry with God for bringing her to this strange place only to lose the husband she loved so much. At other times her anger would shift to gratitude she felt to God for her sons, so precious to her. How would she survive in this male culture without the protection of her sons? She knelt and thanked God for this blessing.

Not long after the death of her husband, both of her sons met and married Moabite women. In Israel, Moabite women were considered to be immoral. But to her surprise, Naomi did not find this to be true of her daughters in- law. One was named Orpah and the other Ruth, and Naomi was quite fond of them both. How good they were to her sons and to her. They lived together in this place for about 10 years, until again, without warning both of her sons died in the fields. Naomi was overwhelmed with grief and this time could not be comforted. She saw nothing good about God and was filled with rage. How could God have done such a thing? How would she survive? Hadn’t she been a good wife and mother?

Now this is a familiar part of the story for us isn’t it? We suffer; things go wrong in our lives even when we have led exemplary examples. Like Naomi, we search for where we went wrong, feeling like we are being punished. We may even choose bitterness. But this confuses us, for we know that God does not do these things to punish us. We may live 10, 20 or 30 years of our lives, believing in a world that rewards the good and punishes the evil, until one day life slams on the brakes and we learn the truth: You can do everything right and still get hurt. Eventually we learn that rain falls on the good and bad alike, and being good is no protection from suffering.

So Naomi, like you and I in our suffering, found herself in unfamiliar and frightening circumstances. She had heard that the famine was over and she longed to be with her own people. She wanted to return to Bethlehem to be with her friends. She insisted that her daughters in–law return to their families in Moab. They must find husbands to protect them. The love they had for each other brought them to tears over the separation. Finally Orpah agreed to return to her family, but Ruth would have nothing of it and utters these famous words:

Whither you go I will go;

Whither you lodge, I will lodge;

Your people will be my people;

and your God will be my God.

Where you die, I will die-

there will I be buried.

Naomi had touched Ruth deeply. She considered her a mentor, an example, a woman full of truth and wisdom. Naomi had impacted Ruth’s life in a way that allowed her to follow Naomi to a foreign country with a foreign God. Ruth was full of loyalty and protection for Naomi, just as Naomi felt for her. Mentoring is one of God’s ways of protecting us, often in the midst of our suffering.

This is a powerful story for me; for this story is my story. I considered not sharing this with you, but the more I tried to set it aside, the more it resurfaced, for I suspect this story at some level, is part of yours too.

After years of hoping to move to Colorado that never materialized, my husband and I both were offered jobs here in 1995, that seemed like the answer to our prayers. But just three months after moving our dream home, without warning or symptoms, my healthy husband died suddenly of a brain aneurysm. Amidst the shock and devastation, I found myself in a land of famine. It was Holy Week, his family had come and we were alone. I had no church family, or neighbors and no friends as yet. Even the house without a yard looked like a desert. How I survived this event is a story of hope and God’s constant presence as I journeyed through this long passage of grief. But that is another story.

What I want to share with you today is the Naomi in my life; my mother-in law, who has always been a person of influence in my life. In my early years of marriage I was threatened and often angered by her fierce love of her son, but after I matured more and had a child of my own, I began to take note of her. I didn’t know she was a mentor at the time but through our family gatherings she stood as a strong person of faith. It was not her talking about her faith, but the way she lived her faith, that caught my attention.

Like Naomi she has lost two sons; one only 12 yrs of age; she has survived multiple cancer diagnoses; she has raised 6 children; she has managed the important things of life without wealth; she has lived a lifetime of faithfulness to God; of service to her church. She was a devoted wife, she worked full time as a teacher, she was the best cook you could imagine; the house was always full of company and laughter. Above all, she had raised her children in Christian faith, to stand for what is right; to be there for each other, no matter what, and to welcome others into the family circle.

So unconsciously at first, I had watched her values and faith never shift, no matter how deep her suffering. Over the years we have developed a wonderfully close relationship; and like Ruth, I think I would follow her anywhere. This is because like Naomi, she has my very best interests at heart. And that, I think is the essence of mentoring. That is the kernel that allows us to listen, to follow, to become a mentor to others.

The power of her mentoring came to a head during that year of my husband’s death. My high school boyfriend heard the news; we reconnected and began talking of marriage. How would I tell my mother-in law and the family? I was afraid, so afraid of losing this beloved family. And I knew professionally, I would have serious questions, even doubts counseling others about the wisdom of remarriage in the midst of grief. But for me it was right.

Like Naomi, my mother-in law led the way. She welcomed Allen with grace and love amidst her pain. She set aside her own grief and shock to laugh and celebrate, so happy was she that I would not suffer alone. She welcomed Allen, as she had welcomed me, so many years before into this family. She clearly stated, "Life goes on and so will this family. You are more than a daughter in-law to me; you are like a daughter. I will not give you up."

Was I surprised about becoming engaged in the midst of my grief? No question! Were my family and friends shocked by the news? Without a doubt! Was Allen surprised about the reception he received from this family? Yes, oh yes! It was not what anyone expected.

I wanted the family invited to the wedding but did not ask them to attend. It was too much to expect. But at our wedding, only 14 months after my beloved husband died, his family, my family, came and celebrated our marriage in joyous ways. My brother- in law walked me down the aisle. My family and my closest friends wept for my loss and wept for my joy. Both Allen and I were literally brought to our knees, as this Naomi in my life led the way. What an example of unconditional love. What a statement of this family’s faith in a God who loves and protects us in ways we have never imagined. Our God can answer prayers in the most unexpected ways.

Now you see, if I had not known this Biblical story, I would not have felt the power of it when it became my story. I would not have known it was God protecting me, loving me, reaching out to me in my grief, through this Naomi in my life. I may have mistakenly thought perhaps it’s my good fortune; or it was strictly this family and their extraordinary example, or worse, it must be coincidence. Knowing the Biblical stories, you see, is God’s protection for us, mentoring us; for some day we may need to draw on their truth as they are intended for us.

You need not weep for me, for I have married both the men I have ever loved. Instead, I share this story for other reasons. I know now that God protects us, not from our suffering, but rather in and through our suffering. I know that none of us are exempt from pain, and I know too, that wonderful things can happen in the midst of our suffering, if we know how to look for it. And when it does, make no mistake; it is God alone. I know that our prayers for food, like Naomi’s, are often answered with angels walking into our lives.

I share this story as a way of connecting with you and with God, for it is a story of the power of faith. My story is not one of the perfect family; it is rather the story of the power of God’s mentoring love. In all of our families there are opportunities for us to be mentors; to stand up for what is right, to set aside our own baggage and offer the very best of ourselves, even if we think it is impossible. And when we do, it is not our own virtue, but times when God is acting through us.

I think our toughest work of faith occurs within our families. The Biblical stories are our stories. These living stories of suffering, confusion, doubt, anger, disappointment and fear, rest right alongside those wonderful moments of joy, anticipation, peace, celebration and hope.

For awhile Naomi thought her prayers were ignored. She prayed for an end to the famine in Bethlehem and was led to Moab. She prayed for protection and her husband died. She prayed for happiness and both of her sons died in the fields. Angry, bitter, disillusioned she returned to Bethlehem where even her friends could not comfort her.

But finally it was here, at home, that she found the food, protection and happiness she had prayed for. Ruth married an upright faithful man whose descendants included King David and eventually Jesus.

Now that is some answer to prayer, don’t you think?