Ruth 1:21 – I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty.

I’ve been thinking a lot about brokenness, and the power I’ve seen in that. The redemption God has shown me in the lives of those around me. I’ve thought more about the concept of making space for God to work. How when I’m running on empty, He always seems to refuel me in a unique and special way.

This passage from Ruth keeps popping in my head. This was the voice of Naomi, who at the time had lost her husband and two sons and was so distraught by the turns her life had taken, she was asking people not to call her Naomi but to use a different name because the Lord had testified against her and afflicted her.

As the rest of her life unfolded, she continued a lineage that eventually gave the world David, one of the central figures in the history of our walk on Earth. She may have been empty at one point, but God refilled her. Overflowed her. And it spilled into future generations. It’s still running.

The Lord brought her home empty, because He needed room for the future blessings.

We consider positive people to be those who see the glass as half full. That’s just like us, isn’t it? Striving to focus on what we’ve still got, instead of considering what we lost and why. The power comes when you realize the significance of the glass being half empty and the promise that it will be refilled. Maybe even overflowing.  The next time you’re broken, suffering loss or feeling empty, hold tightly to your glass. Have faith that God simply needed space to fill it again. That as His plan unfolds, even the most painful of losses and the most empty vessels can bring about greatness and fullness beyond your comprehension.