"Now it came about in the days when the judges governed, that there was a famine in the land.  And a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the land of Moab with his wife and two sons.  The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife, Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah.  Now they entered the land of Moab and remained there.  Then Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left with two sons.  They took for themselves Moabite women as wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth.  And they lived there about ten years.  Then both Mahlon ad Chilion also died, and the woman was bereft of her two children and her husband."

The beginning of David's story, for his great-great grandmother is Naomi, begins with turmoil.  Naomi finds herself in a famine.  Her husband dies.  Her sons die.  Alone, in charge of care for her two daughters-in-law, she has trouble.

Later, David will be called a man after God's own heart.

We learn this today:  The heart of a man of God must be grounded in pain.  This is the only way we survive the storms.  This is the only we we walk through the dessert.  This is how we face our giants.  This is what it takes to mold and fashion us. 

Love is born from pain, so love is stronger than pain.

Naomi's journey will lead to life; but first, the struggle...