2026-02-15 WORSHIP THAT CLINGS
Cling to God When Life Empties You: Finding Hope in the Story of Ruth
Have you ever felt like God's hand has turned against you? Like everything you once held dear has slipped through your fingers, leaving you hollow and alone?
That's exactly where Naomi found herself in the Book of Ruth. Three graves. Three funerals. No husband. No sons. No future. Standing in a foreign land with nothing but grief and two daughters-in-law, Naomi's life had been completely emptied out.
Maybe you know that feeling. The diagnosis that shattered your plans. The relationship that crumbled despite your best efforts. The job that never materialized. The silence from heaven when you desperately needed to hear God's voice.
When Pain Clouds Your View of God
Here's what makes Naomi's story so relatable: she didn't stop believing in God. She just started believing He was against her.
"Don't call me Naomi," she told the townspeople when she returned to Bethlehem. "Call me Mara—bitter—because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty."
Sound familiar? Most of us won't abandon God in suffering. We'll just reinterpret Him through our pain. We'll still show up to church, still pray, still sing—but the joy fades. The tone shifts. Our grief fogs the windshield, and suddenly we can't see God clearly anymore.
The crisis doesn't create our theology. It reveals it.
The Power of Clinging to God
But here's where the story takes a beautiful turn. While Orpah kissed Naomi goodbye and returned to her old life, Ruth made a different choice. She clung to Naomi.
"Don't ask me to leave you," Ruth declared. "Where you go, I will go. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God."
This wasn't just family loyalty. This was worship. Ruth was leaving everything—her homeland, her family, her gods—to follow the Lord. She had no guarantee of blessing, no promise of provision, no visible reward. Just faith in a God she was learning to trust.
That's what real worship looks like when life empties you. Not demanding explanations. Not waiting for clarity. Just clinging to God like a child grabs their parent's leg during a thunderstorm.
God Works Before You See It
Here's what Naomi couldn't see yet: while she felt emptiest, God was working at His best.
The narrator quietly adds this detail: "They arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest."
Naomi saw emptiness. God saw harvest. She saw loss. God saw lineage—a lineage that would lead to King David and ultimately to Jesus Christ. The provision was already growing. The redeemer was already in town. Redemption was already possible.
God's providence is often invisible before it becomes undeniable.
What Are You Clinging To?
So let me ask you: what are you holding onto right now? Control? Resentment? Independence? Or Jesus?
Maybe you're in an empty season—empty marriage, empty nest, empty bank account, empty heart. The temptation is to rename yourself "Bitter" and believe God has abandoned you.
But the harvest may already be growing. God may be arranging redemption in ways you cannot yet see or understand. Awakened worship doesn't wait for clarity—it clings to God in the fog.
Your Next Step: This week, identify one area where you feel empty. Instead of demanding answers, practice clinging to God through prayer, Scripture, or worship. Tell Him, "Your God will be my God," even when you can't see what He's doing.
Prayer: Father, when life empties us, help us cling to You. When pain clouds our vision, remind us of Your faithfulness. We don't always understand Your timing, but we trust Your heart. Teach us to worship You not just when the pantry is full, but when the shelves are bare. In Jesus' name, Amen.