Cooking through Ruth

I've been carrying this tote around the last 5 weeks.

I am studying the book of Ruth (it's a small book in the Bible). I've shared my adventures, rather enthusiastically, with several groups/people I love. 

1. My Sunday morning girls- we met on sunday mornings and have cried and laughed, smiled and prayed and dug deep....I LOVE these girls. 

2. A friend from college. We've met at McDonald's, the Library, her house, my house, the park....

3. And then I had the bright idea to cook through it. In Kelly Minter's Bible Study

 She has not only great perspective and good writing, it's got music to go with and...... RECIPES!

Here's what we did -

Invited anyone who'd listen to a sunday night gathering in a kitchen. 

I had a simple handout each week, it included the recipes we were cooking, the week/chapter we were reading (there are 4) , additional verses to look up/ books to check out/ further reading and ideas for ministering to others through feeding (working at the Velma food bank, kitchen team, feeding those who've had surgery/babies/deaths, feeding our families/friends)

We stood around a large bar, I enter mixed reading the chapter and discussing it with the steps of creating the recipe. 

week 1 theme- opposite of the famine that Naomi was in- "The bounty of Summer" We made  recipes using tomatoes/veggies and a watermelon ice. 

week 2 theme- " Crock Pot Meals" chapter 2 highlights Ruth and Boaz's first meeting and her incredible work ethic and since some of us were returning to working/school that week we did meals for the working woman 

week 3 theme- chapter 3 ends with Ruth having taken a big risk and then having to wait, we went the opposite with "Quick Meals"

week 4 theme- "How sweet it is" chapter 4 ends with a wedding , a baby and a beautiful display of God's redemption of man (you know he made us then Eve sinned, we needed saving....) And ends not with Ruth but with the Lord - getting the glory he deserves, it's so not about us or her. We did all desserts . And they were all from the book. Here is the one she said we must try...Banoffi Pie from England

you can get more info about the study I did at kellyminter.com and the recipe to this wonderful English pie with homemade whipped cream with coffee , bananas and toffee! Yum (you have to scroll down a bit) 

The website also has videos. 

The ladies simply read the book of Ruth during the week, I was the only one going through the study, I of course invited them to buy it. 

They brought their stories, and they were amazing (one shared of forgiving her mother in law, spending sweet moments with her daughter that just went to college, one made us cry and cheer when she organized her first funeral dinner for a tiny baby boy's family)

they brought things they found online or in their study Bibles, we had some kids join us & we always ate what we made :)

I'd do this as a retreat for other churches,  I loved it!