Self Talk Part 3: The Naomi Lens

Self Talk # 3 The Naomi Lense 

Central Idea: Don’t allow your circumstances to define you. Separate yourself from what you are going through, and see the bigger picture through an eternal lens, recognizing the greatness of God.

Text: Ruth 1:20-21 ESV

20 She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi, when the Lord has testified against me and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?”

I. Introduction: The Lens Through Which We See

• Anecdote: Illustrates how perspectives on wealth (and life) can differ drastically. 
• Core Concept: There are days like this, but don’t let them define you. 
• Key Separation: Distinguish between “you” and “what you are going through.” 
• Competing Lenses: 
  • The Naomi Lens: Pleasant – Represents a worldly, temporal view, lower than God’s plan. 
  • The Mara Lens: Bitterness – Represents a view from the Word, an eternal perspective, higher than the Devil’s plan. 

II. The Story of Naomi: A Biblical Example

• Historical Background: 
  • Naomi was an Israelite woman living in Israel during the time of the judges. 
  • Married to Elimelech, with two sons, Mahlon and Chilion. 
  • Moved from Bethlehem to Moab due to famine. Moab was not a godly place. 
• Tragedies in Naomi’s Life: 
  • Famine forces the family to move. 
  • Her husband dies. 
  • Her sons marry Moabite women, then die. 
  • Naomi is left with her daughters-in-law, feeling hopeless. 
  • She decides to return to Bethlehem. 
• Naomi’s Bitter Declaration: 
  • Ruth 1:20-21: She asks to be called Mara (bitter) instead of Naomi (pleasant) because she feels the Almighty has dealt bitterly with her. 
  • She believes the Lord has brought calamity upon her and returned her empty. 
• Thematic Emphasis: Don’t let a season of life become your reason for life. 

III. Disqualifying the Positive: A Common Trap

• Naomi’s Mistake: Refusing to see any positive aspects of her life because of her losses. 
• Relatable Examples: 
  • Discounting answered prayers as a coincidence. 
  • Downplaying spiritual growth. 
  • Minimizing acts of service. 
  • Rejecting forgiveness. 
  • Dismissing spiritual gifts. 
  • Ignoring divine guidance. 
• Larger Examples: 
  • Job discounting God’s goodness because of his pain. 
  • Thomas discounting the resurrection because of the cross. 
  • Attributing tragedies and illnesses directly to God. 

IV. You and God Are Not What You Have Gone Through

• God’s Will: Not to discount the good or magnify the bad, but to give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18). 
• Circumstances vs. Identity: 
  • What you are going through is not you. 
  • It’s not your purpose; it’s temporary. 
  • Your purpose is to glorify God regardless of circumstances. 
  • God is with you in what you are going through (Isaiah 43:2). 

V. Practical Lessons

• Lesson #1: Choice – Victim or Victor 
  • Be a thermostat, not a thermometer. Let the Holy Spirit change the atmosphere around you. 
• Lesson #2: Focus Determines Reality 
  • Manage your mind. Just because you think or feel something doesn’t mean you have to believe it. 
  • Use your mind like a magnifying glass and direct it into something powerful 
• Lesson #3: Internal vs. External Domains 
  • Keep what’s happening outside separate from what’s happening inside. 
  • Don’t let external upset get inside of you. 

VI. Remaining Calm and Attacking the Problem

• The Mistake of Emotional Reactions: Emotional responses magnify difficulties. 
• John Bunyan Example: Two men in the same unjust situation react differently (one despairs, the other creates). 
• Not Submission, But Strategic Action: 
  • Don’t assume everything is God’s will and passively accept it. 
  • Fight against the wickedness and behavior in the world. 
• The Strategy of Attack: 
  • Two Alternatives: Be controlled by the situation, or manage it towards God. 
  • General Patton’s Example: “Always attack. It will confuse the enemy.” 
  • Praise and thanksgiving breaks down walls and opens prison doors. 
• Armor of God: Includes no armor for retreat! 
• Examples of Faith: 
  • Job, covered in boils, declares, “I know that my redeemer lives” (Job 19:25). 
  • Psalm 27:13-14: “I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.” 
• Learn to Celebrate Small Victories. 
• Develop an Attitude of Gratitude. 
  • Attitude is altitude. 
• God’s Provision: “The God who did not spare His own Son…will He not give us all things?” 
• Farmer Analogy: Illustrates the difficulty of judging events as simply “good” or “bad.” 

VII. Conclusion: The Restored Hope of Naomi

• New Hope: Ruth’s commitment brings hope back into Naomi’s life (Ruth 1:16). 
• Lineage: Naomi’s grandson became the grandfather of King David; she is an ancestor of Jesus Christ. 
• Missing the Forest for the Trees: Don’t miss the big picture by focusing only on the present moment. 
• Eternal Perspective: 
  • God’s plan is bigger than now. 
  • God’s plan is sovereign. 
  • God’s plan is good. 
  • Don’t let bad circumstances define your life and cause you to miss future blessings. 
• Creation Analogy: Even when the earth was without form and void, God was still there. 
• The Crucifixion Analogy: The greatest good that God has yet to do beyond the days of creation 
• Reiterate the core message: Choose the Naomi lens (pleasantness and hope) over the Mara lens (bitterness and despair). 
• Romans 15:13: Trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Call to Action: Actively choose the “Naomi lens” this week, focusing on gratitude and trusting God’s plan.