A woman by the name of Naomi left Bethlehem with her family during a famine; they traveled to the country of Moab. They went on what was supposed to be a temporary "sojourn" (a short stay) and ended up staying ten years, during which time Naomi's husband and two sons died (Ruth 1:1-5).
Naomi then heard the good news that God had come to the aid of His people in Bethlehem by providing food for them, so Naomi returned to Bethlehem with her daughter-in-law, Ruth. But it was a bittersweet homecoming for Naomi; she had lost everything dear to her - her husband and sons. She was empty and hurting (Ruth 1:19-22).
When the people of Bethlehem saw Naomi again, they said, "Could this be Naomi?" She replied, "Don't call me Naomi," she told them. "Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty" (Ruth 1:20-21).
God used Naomi's feelings of emptiness to draw her back home to Israel. And then God took Naomi from empty and bitter to happy and full through a "Kinsman-Redeemer" from Bethlehem by the name of Boaz. Boaz was a close relative of Naomi, who was not only wealthy and full of love, but also willing to redeem and marry Naomi's Moabite daughter-in-law, Ruth. In the end, Ruth gives birth to a son and Naomi's joy is restored in full (Ruth 4:13-17, Luke 3:32).
Dear friend, to turn from the Lord and go out into the world is a deliberate choice for emptiness and dissatisfaction. It leaves us disillusioned, sad, bitter, and empty.
If you are hurting with feelings of emptiness today, you also have a Redeemer from Bethlehem named Jesus. He is a man of great wealth, who deliberately became poor for you on the cross that you would become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9). Jesus gave up all of Himself for you at the cross to fill you by His Spirit because He loves to take empty people and make them full.
Colossians 2:9-10 (NIV) “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ, you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.”