Hey, Siestas! I am so blessed to bring you this greeting from Kelly Minter, our Siesta Summer Bible Study teacher. I LOVE HER, I LOVE HER, I LOVE HER, I LOVE HER!!
All comments to this post are meant to be straight to her. Here is your chance to thank her or tell her something very specific you gleaned from the study of Ruth.
I have loved every single minute of this journey. Thank you so much for walking it out with us. I am honored beyond words to seek Christ with you through the pages of His infinitely rich Word! Let’s keep it up, Sisters.
God, come get more and more glory from this community. You are the ONLY thing that makes this work.
Greeting from Kelly Minter from LPV on Vimeo.
Kelly:
Thank you so much for sharing what God spoke to you through the Book of Ruth in the form a this Bible study. It’s amazing that no matter how many times I study a portion of scripture, God brings new insight from His Word!
One of the things God spoke to me was that rather than sitting at the feet of my Redeemer, there are times that I must lie down at His feet in full surrender and fully trust Him with my life and future. God has been speaking to me about a new level of trust in Him. I am excited about where He will be taking me on this journey!
Also, (I’m out-of-state for a few days & don’t have my book with me) you said something to the effect of “…He takes the white linen of His righteousness and covers our scarlet sins… “ This got me to thinking about something I learned in a chemistry class. The color black is the presence of all color and the color white is the absence of all color. If you have ever tried to paint over a heavy pigmented dark color such as black or scarlet with a light color such as white, you soon discover that it can’t be done without a primer. I find it so amazing that God’s non-pigmented white righteousness completely covers our heavily pigmented black/scarlet sins!
Thank you, Kelly, and I look forward to the next living room series study! God bless you!
Kelly, I so much enjoyed doing the Ruth Bible Study this summer. I have read the book of Ruth and never read it like I did with your study. Maybe it is where I am in life right now.
I had asked several women to do the study with me in May. Women from Texas, New Hampshire, and by where I live in Ohio. My daughter set up a discussion board where we could comment on the Bible study and after Beth spoke to us we would answer the questions on the discussion board and read each others comments.
On June 4th this year was the ninth anniversary of the death of my loving husband. Although the years have been difficult I was becoming a new me with the help of Jesus the only one who gives me continued strength. Then on June 9 my precious six year old granddaughter was killed in a car accident where my daughter and eight year old grandson witnessed. It has been horrific. Again, I hold desperately to God trusting for strength each minute, hour and day. Praying for the strength and for His loving arms around my daughter, son in law and grandson.
After my husband died my grandson Alex was as the women of the church said to Naomi (know you are right that we all know the women of the church 🙂 )that her grandson would renew her life which my grandson did and then was blessed with my granddaughter. Years later I also was blessed with a 19 month old granddaughter and a 15 month old grandson.
However, my heart is broke with the loss of my precious granddaughter. I thought about not doing the study this summer but knew that God was laying on my heart to do so and am so thankful I listened and that others walked this journey of Ruth together.
All of them mentioned how your writings brought to life the book of Ruth and showing us the correlation between the kingsman redeemer and Jesus Christ. Amazing! I loved the legacy and family line really fascinating!
Again, Thank you to you Kelly and Beth for the study this summer.
If you are able please add my family to your prayer list – only GOD gives us the strength day by day!!
Take Care
Oh Connie, my heart broke when I read what you and your family are going through. There is no way I can begin to grasp the pain you are in with the loss of your precious granddaughter, but please know that I care and am praying for you tonight.
So very sorry, Connie. Thank you for joining us for this study inspite of your horrendous pain. Praying!
Kelly-
I cannot express how much my group and I “gleaned” from the study of Ruth! We loved it and have learned a ton! My favorite part is really understanding the word redeemer. I have used that word to describe who Christ is but I now feel that so much more deeply.
My group and I grew so much together through this study and we will be meeting in two weeks to discuss the first two chapters of No Other Gods (and of course eat!).
My God richly bless your ministry and continue to pour into you words that will not only enhance your legacy but ours as well!
Thank you!!!
Kelly, I do not have adequate words to tell you what a blessing Ruth was to me. I thought I knew the book of Ruth inside and out and wouldn’t really benefit too much from the study (ha!). I can tell you that I am forever changed. Many of the truths that you brought to light were much needed in my present. Thank you for letting God speak through you. I can’t wait for your next one ! Blessings to you !
Kelly, Your Bible Study was wonderful, one I so looked forward to getting into every day, loved your sense of humor too. Thanks for being a part of my summer and I so look forward to doing another one of your Bible Studies. We also loved your music and we think your’re just great. May God Bless you again and again. Debbie
Hi Kelly,
I loved this Bible study! At our first meeting when asked what our goal was for this summer Bible study, mine was to learn to trust God more. He has been so faithful to me and I worry way too much. On my first day of study, while I was praying over trusting God more, I was sitting at my kitchen table, when a bird flew into my window. Immediately I thought of the passage in the Bible on worry in Matthew 6 and the “birds of the air”. Our Heavenly Father takes care of them and how much more will the Lord take care of His children. Well, I took a picture of that little bird who was “stunned” from hitting my window and thanked God for reminding me that I could trust Him. The bird flew away a few minutes later, thankfully. I sat in awe of the Lord throughout the study knowing that I could put all my trust in Him. The day after I finished, a dear friend came to my work and gave me a grapevine garland that had been sent with some flowers for the recent death of her husband. She said the Lord had told her that I needed that garland and on the very top was sitting…a sweet little bird. I believe that was the Lord’s confirmation–I CAN TRUST HIM!!
Thank you for allowing the Lord to use you. You are a blessing!
Much love,
Tisha
Pilot Mtn, NC
dearest kelly!!! i want to say you have no idea just HOW greatly the Lord has used this study of ruth with you, in my life this summer. the Lord’s redemption of me has struck me in such a tender way… it meant so much to me, that she wasn’t from the “right family” -that where you come from doesn’t say where God can take you and what He can make of your life. oh i could talk about the treasures i found all day, but just one more big one was the whole weeping forward concept… how did you KNOW my life when you wrote that?! 😉 i am in a major transition from 3 years in papua new guinea, coming home to everything i know being in shambles; my family and my church. God has SO encouraged me on this journey through ruth’s life. kelly, i feel like we’re friends after this, especially since you shared recipes! thank you so much. you are so appreciated and loved!!
Hi Kelly!
This was a much-needed Bible study for me this summer. My family is in transition, as we move to South Korea next month. I have been fighting it, stressing over it, and the life of Ruth, a foreigner has been so fitting for me. It’s been a blessing to see how God blessed her faithfulness and obedience in submitting to God. I can’t wait to see what your next Bible study will be! Again, thanks so much for a wonderful study!
~Tina
Kelly,
Thank you for your study of Ruth. It didn’t go where I expected it to, but it was such a blessing.
I was taught that it was Naomi’s kind, loving acceptance of Ruth and Orphah into her family (while her sons were alive) and her gentle teaching of the Israelite ways that won Ruth over. I had never really dwelt on the bitterness that came after the deaths of her husband and sons. So your book forced me to look more closely at something that I generally steer clear of – grief and bitterness and the healing that comes later, from a God who is right there all along.
Deirdre
A my home girls (ages 24 to 85)and I loved the Bible Study so much. We laughed, we cried and grew closer to the Lord. Thank you so much for putting the lesson the Lord gave you to paper.
Annette
Our group of 13 loved every minute of the study, the fellowship and most importantly growing closer to our Father. Even through this study of Ruth, we answered the question – “Is the gospel really that simple?” with a firm YES! Isn’t it amazing how each study hits you right where you are! On our last night we passed out the NOG study and are knee deep in it! We are going to keep up the two week interval of meeting – different living room, different food, same God! Thank you both – Kelly and Beth for your concern for us “whosoevers” and keeping us all thirsty for more of Him!
There are four of us doing this study: Me, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, and we have such a great time together!
Although there were many things I gleaned from your study, Kelly, the thing that came forward the most was the saddness I have felt feeling I do not have a group of “nogs” supporting my mission work through ministry. As I prayed everyday of the study, “Father God, please allow me a wonderful group of prayer warriors like Kelly and Beth have,” day by day ladies were revealed to me and they are coming along side of me to help. Praise Him!
Also during the study I was contacted by a local women’s ministry to play 2 or 3 songs for their annual women’s retreat in September and God not only gave me a strong heart for the retreat, He has given me a new song for it. It has been so long since I’ve had a new song, my soul is in awe of His works!
Thank you so much, Kelly, for sharing about your nogs all through the study. May God continue to bless and keep you, cause His face to shine on you, and finish the good work He has started in you. Amen!
Kelly, I am one of the slower siestas, having worked my way through little more than half of the Ruth study. I am loving it! You are truly anointed as a writer, and I have enjoyed every page of the study. As I continue to journey through the final pages, I know that God will speak wondrous things to me and that when I have completed the study, I will have been changed. Thank you for your faithfulness to God’s Word and to the gift He has entrusted to you. May He continue to bless you as you honor Him in all things.
Sweet Kelly, Siestas and Beth,
I’ve so wanted to get on here and comment, but have been unable to these last couple of days. And since I was tardy every other time, I guess this just seemed fitting.
I wasn’t sure I could find the words this morning, but when I listened to Kelly’s video and heard her mention those in a season of loss, my mouth dropped open at the realization that unbeknownst to me earlier, that is exactly where I find myself this week.
We found out on Monday that our 22yr old nephew had very unexpectedly gone to be with our Lord. Tremendously great loss dwelling in heavy hearts that sense God’s love. A true legacy of godliness in my husband’s entire extended family.
God bless each one of you for taking this trip with me and those I’m blessed to have alongside me. We journey on til we are at His feet. Oh come quickly, Lord Jesus!
oh goodness, kathy… i am so sorry to hear about the loss of your nephew. thankful you’re aware of His love in the midst of the pain. prayed for you just now. sending a siesta hug ~
Thank you, dear girl. I sensed your hug and God’s listening to your prayers. Please, please keep it up.
Remember my Beth today, my sister-in-law: the one my AB is named after. She lays her only son to rest today. Of course, we know he’s in the presence of our precious Lord Jesus. But we’re still here. Thank you siestas.
Kathy, praying for your Beth, her family, and your entire family as you go through the process of grieving this huge loss.
Thank you, dear friend.
Hi Kelly,
I have really enjoyed Ruth. I love your style of writing, and how you convey the love of God through getting into the Word, and through sharing from your own life story. It really meant a lot to me how Ruth kept going even when her “reality” did not seem too promising, because she trusted in God, in His working in her life EVEN when she could not see it at the time……… 🙂 (I had just finished Beth’s study of Esther before starting Ruth and it was perfect, God always does that).
Blessings to you always!
karen 🙂
Kelly,
I so appreciate your writing style. I have studied Ruth a couple of times before, but you brought to light things from this book that I have never specifically considered before. I was especially blessed by the discussion in Week 2 of “weeping forward” and of the part in Week 5 about “heritage is not a deal breaker”. Looking at these 2 things blessed & affirmed me in this season of my life right where I needed. Thank you so much!
I also was blessed by “No Other Gods” during the Summer of ’08. It ministered to me right where I was that Summer in a HUGE way as well. God is so, so good!!
He is using you girl! Thank you for letting Him! I hope it is His will for you to write another study soon.
Blessings & Love-
Pam
Kelly,
Through this bible study, you have brought the Book of Ruth to life! I used to think I knew the story of Ruth, but through this study, I’ve learned it in a whole new way. Although I have a few more days to finish (started late), it has been such an encouragement to me (at a time where I def. needed encouragement!) This story is just one example of how God works all things out for our good, exceedingly above and beyond what we could ever ask or think (Rom. 8:28, Eph. 3:20).
Thank You and God Bless You!
Patti, Kissimmee, FL
Kelly,
I absolutely love doing your Bible studies! You are my favorite Bible teacher! (It’s ok — Beth is my favorite, too!) I can’t wait to get home in the evenings to work on that night’s lesson. You make me feel like we’re best friends because you cover things that are right in the center of my being. What other Bible teacher would write songs to deepen our understanding and affection for these lessons about our Redeemer and then sing them to us!!! What other Bible teacher would provide great recipes for some good ole hospitality and fellowship!! You are a gifted, lovely and gracious woman! I’m with Beth: I love you, I love, I love you! I hope you are working on your next Bible study because I can’t wait. Be encouraged — the Lord is abundantly using you! If I ever move to Nashville, I want to be your best friend! Thanks for your amazing work!……..Gail
Kelly!
How fun to do a Bible study written by a friend of mine. What was really fun was knowing personally the family and friends you mentioned in the study.
What a gift for our Bible Study group this summer. We meet regularly during the school year but haven’t been able to meet during the summer. We all treasured our times together and all grew so much in the weeks/days between. And we all grew closer together. It really brought us to a place of intimacy and trust within our group that will carry on through the year. We are doing No Other Gods this fall. We can’t wait. You have a wonderful gift and I feel blessed to know you. If you ever want to put on a concert down in Warrenton, we’d love to have you! (Sell some CDs, books, etc.). 🙂
Love,
Megan
Thank you so much for this Bible study. It has strcuk such a tender place in my heart this summer. It has truly refreshed me in a way I was not expecting.Thanks!
Just prayed Ruth 2:12 for my husband!!! See Ruth isn’t just for us girls! 😉 Kelly you have blessed me beyond measure through this study! After a season of doubt, I am coming back into full force believing Him and that He speaks to us and to our need TODAY! Above and Beyond!
I am “en fuego” again!
Many blessings to YOU for your faithfulness to HIM, Kelly!
This has turned out to be the most memorable Bible study, and the book of Ruth will forever be very special to me as a result.
My sweet daughter-in-law (I saw her in Ruth so many times during this study) and our son have lived with us since they got married! He was a full time student working on his Master’s degree (in statistics) and times are tough, so they just moved upstairs.
This summer we have helped them move into the next stage of their lives … his PhD studies. From Florida to Iowa!!
What a journey…and it just so happened that this trip to Iowa took place during the last week of my Bible study… The last day’s lesson being the last day of the trip home.
Our son and his wife drove their car, and we followed behind in my husband’s work truck. While riding in the truck, I started the study, and my husband asked me to share it with him… so we read it together and cried together and laughed together. It was a trip that was so focused on “legacy”!! Even when we would sit down and eat together, our son would talk about all the things he had learned growing up in our home.
I wrote so many notes in the study…even marked where tears fell on some pages.
When we finished helping them get settled in (it all came much too quickly), we headed home.
About 4 hours from home, our truck broke down in a big way…but God was so good to us that this happened near the exit where we had lived 7 years of our lives together and had many great friends we could call on. My husband chose a man he had worked with for years. He just took care of all the details (towing, etc.) and picked us to take us to his house. When I got there, his wife met me with just the most amazing words of blessing!! She told me how much I had impacted her life years ago by taking her to a Bible study (and even that she washes clothes in cold water because I did). Words do not describe how kindly these people treated us….oh yes…that would be hesed wouldn’t it? We stayed two nights and three days with them while we waited on our car to get fixed.
The last night there, I was telling her about the Bible study and that I would send her a copy. She said that would be wonderful, but could she borrow mine until hers arrived…she was so anxious to start! I left my (all written in) copy with her, and watched as the next day she carried it with her everywhere we went and invited people to be part of the group she was going to start to work through the book together!
Seeing Naomi at the beginning and end of this book has been very special to me. I have always loved Ruth, but that made it even sweeter to me … she had been so bitter. Also, I loved comparing Christ to Boaz. Once again, I’d seen Him as our Kinsman-Redeemer….but to see him the one who wouldn’t stop until he had accomplished what he needed to? To love me in such a tender way… priceless.
This trip has changed my life and my husbands in so many ways…and at the center of it all was God in His Word through a sweet Bible study on a little book called Ruth.
Thank you for your part…
Debbie
Thank YOU, Kelly! 🙂 I really enjoyed the study. I feel like I’m in a season both of loss and as you said, we’re all in the season of legacy. It was such a comforting reminder that like Ruth, I too can take refuge under my Kinsman Redeemer’s wings…all praise to Him. Thank you for your ministry. Was a blessing doing this study and “NOG”. 🙂 May the Lord bless you as you continue to serve Him! 🙂
Kelly, Thank you so much for your insight in to the book of Ruth- I got a lot out of your teaching that I had not gleaned from this book before. What impacted me the most is to think about the impact our lives have on the future, how God will use our lives, and the lives of our children and so on to work out His plan. That gives me a huge sense of peace and removes a burden I wasn’t really aware that I carried! Thank you for your willing heart to serve Him, and in turn, us.
Kelly and Beth, I did not participate in this study as a Summer Siesta. We are doing it at my church in our small group which consists of women of all ages and there are about 15-20 of us participating. We are in our third week of study, but I am ahead into week 5 already. It is a great study Kelly, and I love your writing skills and your teaching style as well as your music and song writing. God has truly spoken to me through this journey. Of course, we love Beth and have been blessed through the years by her awesome studies. Beth, the part of the Ruth study about being in a seaon reaping and sowing reminds me of your Birmingham conference in 2006 on “Making a Pact to Impact the Next Generation”. When I attended that conference my Mom had just passed away and I have no children and of course no grandchildren. It made me realize that I do have a responsibility and a generation to pass along a heritage of faith to. So Kelly I am in a season of reaping and sowing. This Ruth study has been very interactive and is allowing us to connect with other women through, prayer, Bible study and fellowship. Beth, thanks for incorporating this study on your blog. It has been helpful to me as the facilatator.
God bless you Kelly, Beth and all Siestas everywhere.
Janice
Dear Kelly,
My friend Brooke and I did the “Ruth” study together, and it was a a rich experience for both of us. Each of us discovered so many things to which we could relate, and areas of our lives where we could apply what we learned.
My first husband was killed instantly in an accident over seven years ago; in a moment’s time, at the age of 46, I became a widow and single mom to three teenagers. This October, my “kinsman-redeemer” and I will celebrate our 4th wedding anniversary. A lot of pain and grieving took place in the years between Tim’s death and my wedding to John. During those years of grieving, I had no idea what blessings God had in store for me. But even in the darkest times, His presence was evident, and He revealed blessings throughout every step of the journey.
In addition to the most amazing husband a woman could ever dream of, I am also blessed to be the stepmom to John’s three daughters. All six of our children are now adults. In March we began a wonderful new season of joy when our first grandchild was born. Little Jude is the son of John’s oldest daughter and her husband, and he is truly a delight. We are thrilled to be expecting the next grandchild in February, this time from my side of the family and the youngest of our six. Our families have two separate histories, and one wonderful present and future together.
I have read the book of Ruth many times. But in doing this study, I realized how many details I have missed in the past, and how many treasures I have never dug deep enough to discover. I am looking forward to reviewing each lesson and each revelation that God revealed over the past 7 weeks (we were behind most of the time!)
Thank you so much for the perfect summer study!
Lois Lanham
Manchester, MO
Dear Kelly
First, how wonderful to finally see you and hear your voice. I feel like we are friends.
I cannot thank you enough for the study. It stimulated me mentally (I learned some new things I never thought of before), moved me emotionally and helped me love, trust and cherish Jesus more. The study has helped me deal with some dramatic changes and challenges I faced over the past 6 weeks. And through the study allowed me to give hope and guidance to my children and friends that I loved.
Thank you for sharing the Word, your heart, your life and friends with us… And may your legacy continue to be strong and fruitful. Blessings Cheryl
I loved this study. It was perfect for where I was at and what I was thinking. I was living with my whole family (husband and 3 kids) in a TINY one room cabin this summer. Very rustic camp. None of the normal amminiities we’re all so used to. Sharing a bathroom with about 8 other girls and more when moms came to camp with their Boy Scouts. I was thinking once again, “What in the world am I doing here and when my husband told me they’d asked me to be Camp Director here for the summer, why in the world did I ever did I ever agreed to this? Why did I ever agreed to support him in a career with the Boy Scouts? I should have known we’d end up somewhere like this.” Something like that. One night me and my husband were watching a movie in the lodge on the one tv we found that actually worked and we were watching “The Last Starfighter”. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen it. It’s an 80’s movie. Made around the same time as Star Wars. It was towards the end when he comes back to earth and asks his girlfriend to come back with him to Rylos. I joked with my husband, “Well at least you only asked me to come with me to Camp Grizzly and not another planet!” Then, he said, “If I did would you go with me?” I knew he was still mostly joking, but I thought about where we were and about the other camp we went to years ago in the cabin on stilts that shook everywhere we walked and I was sure was going to tumble into the very fast moving river below and we were all going to die (me, my husband, and our then infant son that eventually got us into this whole Boy Scout mess), and I grinned and said, “Yeah, probably!” I’m just that crazy about him, I guess! I’ve known all along he was nuts, but I could never resist him and I don’t think I was supposed to! I’m the ever cautious, scared little thing! God knew I’d never attempt to live in those situations without him!
Kelly, thank you SO much for this study. There has been a wealth of ways in which God has spoken to me, week in and week out, through Ruth, but also God has used Ruth to prepare me, immensely, for a recent loss in my life. My grandmother passed away this week and God had me right in the middle of the last week of homework on legacy. How good Has been to show Himself to me in this way!!
He has used this past week’s homework as such a comfort and encouragement, so much so, that I felt led to speak at my grandmother’s funeral and included this quote from you: “At its simplest, I’ve been given a stunning heritage I did nothing to earn; and that’s the beauty of legacy. It’s a gift we leave for others.”
Thank you for your gift of this study!
Thank you, thank you Kelly for writing this lovely study on the fabulous scriptures in the book of Ruth in your winsome style. Our group thoroughly enjoyed this study, and we usually take the summer off. Our group consisted of 17 women, ages ranging from mid 40,s to early 70’s and because of summer schedules there were usually about 12 in attendance for s rich discussion. We met weekly (instead of bi-weekly) at my house and we belong to a variety of churches. We bonded over this wonderful look into a foreign woman’s “loss, love and legacy” and are so grateful to have gotten a glimpse of your and the other nogs thoughts. Most of our group have lived long enough to have walked through our own losses etc. but we loved how personal you made the study, not allowing us to look at Ruth without considering how God has dealt with our own struggles and be renewed in our appreciation for the wonderful ways of our wonderful Lord. Thank you again from Bradenton, FL.
In Jesus name,
Susan Knowles
Kelly- I can not thank you enough for your obedience in writing this and your other bible studies. I walked through NOG with you and loved every minute of it, I have used your Hannah study with teen girls at our church and now Ruth….Oh my word what a WORD!!!
The lessons on redemption and going to the threshing floor have left me breathless at the feet of our savior. I have so enjoyed this. Thank You, Thank YOU! Words just arent enough…
Dear Kelly,
Thank you so much for spurring me on (Heb 10:24) through this study of Ruth. I THOROUGHLY enjoyed this study from start to end. I even found myself doing two days of study in a day a couple of times! The Lord used it to reproof, rebuke, instruct, and exhort me.
At the beginning of the study, Ms Beth had suggested that we write a prayer/letter of what we hoped God will do through the study. I did. Here is an excerpt from my letter:
“Father, to be honest, I love the story of Ruth because I am a hopeless romantic that loves to see happy endings (esp one that includes a husband and baby). I fear that being quite familiar with this story I could miss out on what You have for me. Please reveal Yourself afresh to me through this book…let me get a fresh glimpse of my Redeemer and His wonderous love for me…”
I write this with teary eyes because He has been so faithful to give me a fresh glimpse of Himself, and He is more beautiful than ever. My prayer and your hope at the end of the study (P.162) that the reader leaves with, “a fuller, deeper, and more supreme grasp of the good news of the gospel: The hesed of Jesus Christ,” has been realized in my life. I am so grateful to Him, and for you.
Love and Prayers,
Eposi
P.S. Found something during my Scripture reading yesterday morning which may be insignificant but which I found interesting. I noticed that years after Ruth & Boaz, Solomon named one of the two pillars of the temple after his forefather, Boaz (2 Chron. 3:17). I thought it would have been really cute if he had named the other, Ruth, but he didn’t! 🙂
Kelly,
I had to come back and add that I made the Banoffee Pie from the workbook today for our house group- A-MAZ-ING!! Oh. my. word. Such an incredible pie! And maybe I’m way out of it as far as current cooking techniques, but WHO KNEW that could be done with evaporated milk! Thanks for the incredible indulgence!!
Kelly, I cannot even describe the impact of your study on my life! I am currently walking through a season of loss and God has started the healing process through your book. I can’t tell you what a comfort it was to be reminded that He knows me and finds nothing about me shocking and loves me! I so resonated with Ruth and the broken pieces of her life and putting herself out there so that God could put those pieces back together in a way that was even more beautiful and brought Him glory. He’s been speaking those words to me through this season but I think the concept cemented itself seeing it walked out in Ruth’s life. I also loved the music that accompanied the study. Music so ministers to me and there was a special thrill in loading up my iPod and immersing myself in worship. Thank you for allowing God to pour out His Word through your book!
A group of 9 ladies from 30’s through 60’s shared this study at our church. It was wonderfully enlightening. What stands out the most to me is how God works to carry out his perfect plan. We look forward to more of your studies.
I loved the summer book study. Kelly, you are amazingly knowledgeable, especially for someone so young!! I know God has lots in store for you to do with your life and your talents. Loved the music and recipes as well.
Kelly, your Ruth study was so perfectly-timed in my life that my last response to the last question in the workbook was, “I cannot believe God’s timing of this study in my life!” A big moment came for me after I finished the workbook and reflected on Ruth’s story as a whole. I’ve been dealing a lot this year with consequences of stepping out of God’s will.
Looking back at Ruth’s story through your presentation, it struck me that initially Ruth was a “consequence” of Naomi’s detour to Moab. I think Naomi would rather have returned to Israel alone to save face from the fact that her sons married Moabite women, but Naomi (the sinner) couldn’t shake Ruth (the consequence of the sin) off.
When I began this study, Satan was using my consequences to foster an unhealthy amount of guilt in me even though I had repented of straying and returned to the will of God through the grace of Jesus. The encouraging aspect to me at the end of the study was that God used the consequence of Naomi’s detour to grow a blessing of huge proportion. That’s just plain cool.
I’m still struggling some, but praise Christ, not like I was. Thank you for using your gifts to God’s glory!
Kelly,
Thank you so very much for leading us in Bible study this summer! You are surely anointed by our Lord in bringing such relevance of His Word to our lives. A group of 15 ladies met in my home in Bridge City, Texas….a group representing 9 various churches. Let the Lord be praised! Our lives will forever be impacted by your obedience to Him in writing “Ruth”. I purchased an additional workbook from LifeWay last week and mailed it to a friend of mine who’s a single mom of 4 children. She is already rejoicing in how the study is encouraging her and building her faith. God bless you, Kelly.
Much love,
Melanie Toups
Thank you Kelly, you are so cute and sound cute! I’ve totally enjoyed this study. Did it alone (felt kinda like a loser but that is ok 🙂 ) I miss it trying to figure out my next study… but thank you. Hope you start a new study for all of us soon.
Kelly – I really enjoyed looking at this familiar story in a new light. You brought some fresh insights and your title really does say all that I learned about – Love, Loss and Legacy – and I will always remember those 3 words now when I think of Naomi & Ruth!
God bless you as you continue to walk in Him, obedient to His call on your life!
Thank you Kelly & Beth and all the folks who support your ministry. This study of Ruth has really touched my heart in a special way. First I did it on my own, 2nd, after having been given up at birth by my biological family, abandoned by my adopted family, and my first husband leaving me with two small children for another woman, I could relate to Ruth being a foreigner, and the Lord as OUR redeemer. If it were not for Gods love adn redemption for me, dont think I would be able to carry on in this life.
Thank you again for all your love for God and a great season in his word
Kelly,
Thank you so much for your Bible study on Ruth. You provided new insight, especially with Naomi. I always saw her as a “minor character” necessary as a prelude to the love story of Ruth and Boaz. Thank you for helping me to see her in a “new light” in so many ways. I’m looking forward to your next, yet unwritten Bible study!! Hopefully, just in time for next summer’s siesta Bible study!
Jeannie
Our group of 3 — me, my Mom, and my sister joined together in this study even though my sister lives in Colorado, and we are in Kentucky. We used speaker phone for our group discussions. It was a beautiful time of sharing for the three of us.
This study was a true God send for me. Though I have not had a recent loss, this is a tough season of life, & I started the summer off acting like Naomi when she returned to Bethlehem – – feeling empty and forgotten. Thru the study of Ruth, God has reminded me that sustained obedience will bring a great harvest! Most importantly, He has made me acutely aware that because of my true Kinsman-Redeemer, Jesus Christ – who not only was able but was willing, I am His redeemed and beloved child!!!
Kelly, Thank you so Much!!!!!!!! Keep up the awesome work for our Lord and Savior —In Christ Alone.
Lynda Sanders
Lexington, KY
Greetings Kelly!:)
Kelly, girl, I have to tell you that doing this study has been a complete breath of fresh air to me this summer. I got to do the study with my older sister, and we had a the best time talking through the questions from the chapters. When you talked of Ruth’s character-her humility, kindness, love, focus on others needs-it challenged me to live that way. What I thought was an interesting verse in Ruth was Ruth 3:3, where she was instructed to wash, anoint, and then to go…and then you had us read about Samuel anointing David…the anointing concept really stuck out to me…the Lord looking at the heart, all that good stuff!!:) What really motivated me was the prayer of willingness you talked about, having all the resources at the right time, and being willing to “do the thang” as our Siesta Mama would say:) Bless you much, Miss Kelly Minter, my fellow Sister-in-CHRIST! May He continue to bless you and use you to His Glory:)
katiegfromtennessee
Hi Kelly,
Your bible study was LOVELY! It was a route to Peace for me this summer. I enjoyed spending my “quiet time” reading your work and going through every line of the book of Ruth. One of us spent most of the summer with her 8 yr son at Texas Children’s Hospital doing Chemo…..she was encouraged and blessed which meant very much. Thank you for using your talent to leave a legacy in the city of Zion rather than the city of Babylon. God is so good.
The only other post I read this morning was Connie’s. I am praying for our sister and for her daughter and her family.
Love,
Jackie
Hi Kelly. I have loved, loved, loved leaving my ribbon book mark in my Bible in this book of Ruth for the summer. I will never think of Ruth and this book in the same way again. I decided to do this study because my Bible study girls had decided to take the summer off, because my middle name is Ruth, and because I had a nudging of the Holy Spirit. I didn’t comment any online. It was just God and me, and I loved it! Some profound things I gathered was the concept of sustained obedience, the fact that the book of Ruth ends with Naomi not Ruth,and most importantly, the fact that Ruth’s decisions weren’t out of selfish ambition but out of a pursuit of God. I want to be that woman! But my most profound moment actually didn’t come from the book of Ruth, but where you were talking about a name. You talked about Mary in John chapter 20 outside Jesus’ tomb. As I read those words, I couldn’t imagine how I would feel when I heard Jesus say my name,then look into His eyes with recognition (many tears now), and know that it was Him. Very profound moment for me, and I thank you so much.May God continue to use and bless you!
I am in Colorado, my daughter Kendra in North Carolina. We did study via instant messaging online. This sweet study brought us closer to one another which we both longed for. Both of us are taking multiple lessons to heart from Ruth’s story. We are thankful to God for speaking to us through your study.
Hi Kelly,
Thank you so much for the wonderful journey through the book of Ruth! I treasured every precious, God-breathed word and then reenforced the lessons with your music. I loved it so much that I took two of your cd’s in my car from Houston to Austin and back with my 19 year old son in tow. You might be amazed to hear that he truly enjoyed them too, heard his own messages through the lyrics and then determined (without seeing your photograph) “Mom, she sounds like she’s very cute!!”
The most inspiring moment of this study came when I had to take Robbie back to New York City to begin a second year of school there. As we hauled luggage, little by little, from our hotel, through the subway system to his apartment about 25 minutes away, I thought of Naomi and Ruth making their way from Moab to Bethlehem and I was inspired to take another step whenever I thought I just couldn’t do one more! I thought about how hot, tired, strained, discouraged, frightened, intimidated and aggravated (to name just a few of my own emotions) they must have been on that journey….and that our awesome, faithful, loving and compassionate God protected them, encouraged them and loved them all the way home. If Naomi and Ruth could focus on the horizon and make their way home, I could surely carry my load from the caverns of Grand Central Station, make the long, winding transfer to the A Train at 42nd Street, carry 40 pounds of luggage up five flights of a pre-war, un-airconditioned apartment building and not quit until I was resting in front of a window fan giving God thanks and praise for taking every step with me. Do you think Naomi and Ruth would have chuckled at the suggestion that some small particle of their legacy would be to inspire a middle-aged mother to be THAT devoted to her young son? (I’m chuckling for them!)
So, perfect timing as always, our Father laid your study on my heart and then helped me remember the lessons learned there as I met challenges far away from my own home.
Make no mistake, I learned so much more than that from this study, but I am forever amazed at how often God can guide and teach me the most simple, clear lessons at precisely the moment that I need them. Imagine how differently I might have handled that trip if I had not been deep into Ruth before I left home!
Thanks again Kelly, I look forward to No Other Gods…..I have that study at my desk, ready to go! “May the LORD repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the LORD,the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.” (Ruth 2:12)
Charlotte
Kelly, I have loved this study and have had the priviledge of mentoring a friend of mine who has never done any type of bible study before and it has been a joy to see how every part of it relates to where she is right now. God is soooooo great! Thank you for your commitment and joy!
Dear Kelly,
Our group learned and enjoyed so much from your study of RUTH. It’s hard to say what was my favorite parts. My poor study guide is highlighted all over. I paricularly ejoyed and laughed out loud to your humor, many times.
I suppose one of the most profound things I gleaned from this study, was that God uses, redeems and loves even the vilest preceived sinners for his purposes. Something I personally needed to be reminded of.
Thank you for your insightfullness (sp?). I look forward to the next Kelly Minter study.
Linda
Carolina Beach, NC
I so enjoyed this book. I learned so much about the Lord in it. Of many things the Lord taught me through this book, the thing that stoof out to me the most was just revealed to me yesterday morning in my quiet time….Throught Ruth’s obedience to God, not only was she blessed, but generation after generation was blessed through her. We received the ultimate blessing because she was obedient. Same thing with Abraham, not only was he blessed through obedience, but so were generations still to come. I want to be a person that is obedient, not only to receive blessing but to bless generations after me. What a legacy!!! I guess I just never thought about my obedience affecting others. Wow, God is awesome.
Keysha
Roanoke, VA