A Message from Sandy Yates
A message from Sandy Yates, one of the founders of Naomi2Ruth Online. It has been my great privilege to initiate this on-line ministry and to work with my co-founder, Sandy Harber as together, we decided to use our grief in the loss of our husbands to reach out and help others going through grief or struggles of their own. While this was initially started to reach widows and widowers, we quickly realized that the lessons applied to many other situations in our lives as well. God seemed to want it opened up to anyone who would like to learn from the teachings and it grew from there.
A Little History
I lost my husband over two years ago. Having been a pastor’s wife, I cherished the opportunities I had to assist people with spiritual growth. I was now experiencing a devastation that I had never felt before. Not only did I severely miss my husband, but I also felt a sense of wondering how God would still use me since most of my ministry up until this point was done with my husband. I was often involved in my husband’s counseling and various spiritual growth activities like marriage retreats. Now I had a need that only God could fill. He reminded me that I am complete in Him (Col. 2:10) so I knew God would meet my needs.
I wondered how other people made it through grief without God’s loving arms holding them under His wings and was feeling like I was supposed to help others in similar situations. I was very conscious of my many limitations, like feeling inadequate as a teacher, sudden loss of transportation (since I gave up our vehicle), and now my feelings of physical and emotional weakness. God reminded me that I still had a computer and He still had plans for me. So, I prayed about what I could possibly do and what to share.
Through my devotions, God took me to the story of Naomi and Ruth and I realized that I needed to dig in and explore this further. Sandy Harber, another lady at the church, lost her husband a month prior to me losing mine. I was new to Crossroads Bible Church and Sandy H. and I didn’t really know each other yet. However, as we were suddenly both going through the same thing, we developed a great spiritual bond and friendship. I mentioned to her that God seemed to be telling me to consider an on-line ministry and drawing me to the book of Ruth. She said she had been turning to the Psalms for comfort so far but had not considered the story of Naomi and Ruth. However, within days, she sent me the first lesson on Ruth. I knew God had sent her for the purpose of this ministry.
Move from Email to Online
When we first started, we emailed the lessons once a week to small groups and encouraged interaction between the group participants to support and encourage each other along the way. We found that a lot of people didn’t really want to be part of an email small group, but they enjoyed the lessons themselves. So, we decided to shift to making all the lessons available online for people to read at their own pace.
Widows of the Bible
After finishing the book of Ruth. Sandy Harber decided to study other widows of the Bible and prepare similar studies about them. We have been very blessed by Sandy’s amazing research and ability to offer a variety of new lessons. I praise God for Sandy and her very professional Biblical skills. God has truly called her to the ministry of teaching with clarity and in a way that helps us understand how so many Bible stories apply to our lives.
Ongoing
Please check back regularly as new lessons will continue to get added here. You will be blessed as you walk through the little taught stories of the Bible with Sandy. Our love and blessings to each of you. Please feel free to reach out. We would love to connect with you further! naomi2ruth.connect@gmail.com