1) Whether you are gleefully looking into the face of your future with bright eyes and high hopes, or you have weathered many storms of loss, heartache, and grief, the Lord has a storyline for you. Regardless of where you are in your journey, whether beginning, middle, or end, the Lord’s pen has not yet halted, leaving you alone. He, the maker of our stories, invites us deeper, moving beyond the surface to see the woven fabric underneath. The tale He weaves touches more lives and carries deeper significance than we can fathom. Will you surrender your pen to His hand and allow His fullness to overwhelm you or will you keep holding onto the myth of control, attempting to navigate the pages of your story on your own? Take some time to journal out what it looks like to surrender your happily ever after to the Lord.

2) How often have you felt deeply that the Lord was indeed against you just as Naomi felt? She voiced her feelings, her beliefs, clearly. Yet, God did not hold this gut-wrenching honesty against her; rather, He walked beside her in her grief. Naomi felt alone, but she was not alone. She felt abandoned, but God had never left her side. He was intimately involved with every detail surrounding Naomi’s situation, even her agony. Can you relate to Naomi? When have you walked a pathway of grief so painful you have wondered aloud if the Lord had left you alone? Feel the freedom to express your fears and your feelings, but don’t sink your teeth into them so firmly you’re unwilling to hold onto truth. To help you practically remember the truth of God’s nearness and love this weekend, click for a free printable you can download and print for your bathroom mirror or kitchen wall!

3) Often, we find it most easy to look back over the plotline of our lives and see our struggles, our lows, and see the landscape which caused pain or loss. As you reflect on these periods in your own life, where do you see the goodness of the Lord showing up and being present with you? As Naomi, full of grief and loss, left all she knew and returned to a homeland with empty hands instead of full, the Lord provided for her. She did not see the fullness God would bless her with. She could not know the redemption that was coming, but still, He was faithfully walking beside her. His proof was Ruth. Take time to reflect on your own proof of the Lord faithfully showing up and walking alongside you. Praise Him for never abandoning! Share those moments of victory with someone else who might need encouragement to keep trusting the Father! If you don’t readily see His hand, pray and ask Him to show you! He is near!