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Ruth: Loss, Love & Legacy - Member Book
Ruth's journey of unbearable loss, redeeming love, and divine legacy comes alive in Kelly Minter's Ruth: Loss, Love & Legacy—the second study in the Living Room Series. This 6-week Bible study delves into the noble character of Ruth, her unique relationship with her mother in-law Naomi, and her blossoming love with Boaz.
176 pages, Paperback
Published November 1, 2009
25 people are currently reading
796 people want to read
About the author
Kelly Minter
56 books429 followersKelly lives in Nashville, Tennessee, and serves the Lord passionately both across the U.S. and internationally in a variety of creative roles. An acclaimed author, musician, Bible study creator and teacher, she is passionate to see women impacted by Jesus and His Word.
Growing up outside of Washington, DC, Kelly was raised in a Christian home, the oldest of four children and daughter of a pastor. Her childhood was seasoned with competitive sports, learning the guitar, singing, and a litany of church activities in the congregation her father founded and still pastors. Like many young women, Kelly dealt with inner struggles – anxiety and depression were a part of her growing-up years. “Those struggles are what drove me to Scripture,” Kelly says, “and the catalyst for me to learn for myself who God is.” Throughout her high school career, Kelly played basketball competitively, expecting that to be her path into college. But after a scholarship fell through, she began playing music. And God began a new thing.
Kelly moved to Nashville in the summer of 2000 and released her first record with WORD, followed by a subsequent release on a different label, leading to her first #1 Single on the Inspirational Charts, This Is My Offering. Shortly after this success and several cross-country tours her record company folded leaving Kelly to rethink her vocation and ministry. In the middle of an ever-changing music industry and on a tour through Colorado, Kelly met a book publisher who would two years later sign her to her first book deal.
Kelly’s first book eventually led to LifeWay approaching her about writing a bible study. Authoring curriculum was a new challenge, but one she quickly fell in love with. Kelly’s first three studies include, No Other Gods: Confronting Our Modern Day Idols, followed by Ruth: Loss, Love & Legacy and Nehemiah: A Heart That Can Break. Respected Bible Study teacher and speaker, Beth Moore, chose each of Kelly’s resources for three of her widely-reaching online summer studies. Thousands of women participated and were challenged by Kelly’s writing and her unique perspective on Scripture.
Kelly now writes, teaches, and sings across the United States and also in other countries. Speaking at multiple conferences and events, as well as four Women of Faith events in 2012, Kelly has become a steady and respected teaching voice to women, particularly when it comes to the Scriptures. She also partners closely with Justice and Mercy International (JMI), a ministry that serves in the Amazon jungle; she especially loves working with the jungle pastors who encourage her through their remarkable faith.
When home, Kelly’s days are spent writing, cooking, gardening, enjoying her neighborhood, loving her community, investing in her local church, and walking forward in the things God has for her. She is relevant, palatable, and uncompromising in her teachings from the Bible, and women relate to this.
Growing up outside of Washington, DC, Kelly was raised in a Christian home, the oldest of four children and daughter of a pastor. Her childhood was seasoned with competitive sports, learning the guitar, singing, and a litany of church activities in the congregation her father founded and still pastors. Like many young women, Kelly dealt with inner struggles – anxiety and depression were a part of her growing-up years. “Those struggles are what drove me to Scripture,” Kelly says, “and the catalyst for me to learn for myself who God is.” Throughout her high school career, Kelly played basketball competitively, expecting that to be her path into college. But after a scholarship fell through, she began playing music. And God began a new thing.
Kelly moved to Nashville in the summer of 2000 and released her first record with WORD, followed by a subsequent release on a different label, leading to her first #1 Single on the Inspirational Charts, This Is My Offering. Shortly after this success and several cross-country tours her record company folded leaving Kelly to rethink her vocation and ministry. In the middle of an ever-changing music industry and on a tour through Colorado, Kelly met a book publisher who would two years later sign her to her first book deal.
Kelly’s first book eventually led to LifeWay approaching her about writing a bible study. Authoring curriculum was a new challenge, but one she quickly fell in love with. Kelly’s first three studies include, No Other Gods: Confronting Our Modern Day Idols, followed by Ruth: Loss, Love & Legacy and Nehemiah: A Heart That Can Break. Respected Bible Study teacher and speaker, Beth Moore, chose each of Kelly’s resources for three of her widely-reaching online summer studies. Thousands of women participated and were challenged by Kelly’s writing and her unique perspective on Scripture.
Kelly now writes, teaches, and sings across the United States and also in other countries. Speaking at multiple conferences and events, as well as four Women of Faith events in 2012, Kelly has become a steady and respected teaching voice to women, particularly when it comes to the Scriptures. She also partners closely with Justice and Mercy International (JMI), a ministry that serves in the Amazon jungle; she especially loves working with the jungle pastors who encourage her through their remarkable faith.
When home, Kelly’s days are spent writing, cooking, gardening, enjoying her neighborhood, loving her community, investing in her local church, and walking forward in the things God has for her. She is relevant, palatable, and uncompromising in her teachings from the Bible, and women relate to this.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
November 4, 2011
A thought-provoking breath of fresh air! Kelly Minter has a way of challenging you without overwhelming you. There are two things that really got me thinking: 1) what it means to fully surrender to God, and 2)what it means to see the way God sees, looking at the heart instead of the outward appearance. Highly recommended!
August 13, 2010
5 stars
Wonderful women's study about the book of Ruth. Lots of contextual information about the circumstances surrounding Ruth and Naomi's journey from Moab to Israel, from bitterness to blessing & legacy. Lots of flipping through the Bible to link past and future...Lots of personal connections for all women. Kelly Minter is a single woman, and I appreciated how she casts her literary net to capture the needs and questions posed by women of many different life circumstances...not just wives and mothers. Great discussion questions, great music, and great recipes! I would definitely recommend this for groups of women who want a solid Bible study along with some female fellowship and fun.
Wonderful women's study about the book of Ruth. Lots of contextual information about the circumstances surrounding Ruth and Naomi's journey from Moab to Israel, from bitterness to blessing & legacy. Lots of flipping through the Bible to link past and future...Lots of personal connections for all women. Kelly Minter is a single woman, and I appreciated how she casts her literary net to capture the needs and questions posed by women of many different life circumstances...not just wives and mothers. Great discussion questions, great music, and great recipes! I would definitely recommend this for groups of women who want a solid Bible study along with some female fellowship and fun.
June 29, 2019
This is my first Kelly Minter bible study. She provided a great study on the book of Ruth that breathed new life into an old bible story I heard as a child. Overall, I found this study and the book of Ruth fascinating. Kelly provided sound scriptures to support the study and I really enjoyed this one!
November 13, 2017
I really enjoyed this Bible study. A great and thorough look at Ruth and how God used her in so many ways.
March 6, 2024
This book touched my heart…
December 12, 2024
It was a wonderful Bible study! I learned a lot!
November 14, 2017
Ok. I almost feel bad writing this because Kelly Minter comes across as a really genuinely GOOD person - fun, funny, friendly and warm - someone I could actually be friends with - but I found it almost impossible to believe that she did not in fact write this bible study in a vacuum. It's shocking to me that she developed this project with active participation from multiple friends AND presumably went through some sort of editing process with the publisher and yet no one told her to scale it back on the personal stories.
It's not that the stories are boring, but we bought the book to learn about Ruth, not the life and times of Kelly Minter and friends. Some stories made sense in the context of what we were studying, but others really just felt out of left field. Even if all of the personal stories were totally applicable, the quantity was over the top.
It was a bummer too, because I actually think I would really enjoy a more focused bible study from Ms. Minter - hiding amongst the myriad of Kelly stories were many great insights, things about Ruth and the historical context that I never would have known or thought about myself. I liked the structure of the study, how it picked apart the book verse by verse, and I even really appreciated Kelly's vulnerability when it came to topics like singleness. Had the book been thoroughly edited, pruning many (most?) of the fringe stories, it would have been much stronger.
I wish I could say it was just me who had this impression, but alas, I did not do the study in a vacuum either, and all seven of the women that went through it together agreed: MORE RUTH, LESS KELLY.
It's not that the stories are boring, but we bought the book to learn about Ruth, not the life and times of Kelly Minter and friends. Some stories made sense in the context of what we were studying, but others really just felt out of left field. Even if all of the personal stories were totally applicable, the quantity was over the top.
It was a bummer too, because I actually think I would really enjoy a more focused bible study from Ms. Minter - hiding amongst the myriad of Kelly stories were many great insights, things about Ruth and the historical context that I never would have known or thought about myself. I liked the structure of the study, how it picked apart the book verse by verse, and I even really appreciated Kelly's vulnerability when it came to topics like singleness. Had the book been thoroughly edited, pruning many (most?) of the fringe stories, it would have been much stronger.
I wish I could say it was just me who had this impression, but alas, I did not do the study in a vacuum either, and all seven of the women that went through it together agreed: MORE RUTH, LESS KELLY.
November 2, 2011
I loved Kelly Minter's Thirsting for God. However, her study of Ruth didn't live up to my expectations.
If you look at the book of Ruth, strictly from a literary standpoint, it represents a great analogy of obedience, faith, loyalty, and redemption on so many levels. Plus, it's awesome forshadowing for the coming of Christ. However, by week four it turned kinda, well, romantic on me. In shifting to that focus much of the author's purpose (in my opinion anyway) is lost.
If you look at the book of Ruth, strictly from a literary standpoint, it represents a great analogy of obedience, faith, loyalty, and redemption on so many levels. Plus, it's awesome forshadowing for the coming of Christ. However, by week four it turned kinda, well, romantic on me. In shifting to that focus much of the author's purpose (in my opinion anyway) is lost.
May 8, 2015
This is the second Kelly Minter study I've done, and I really enjoy them! Kelly is very down to earth. She uses some humor and she is just "real" which is refreshing. She makes you feel like she is just like anyone of us doing her study. The study also opened my eyes to things I never realized about the book of Ruth and opened my heart through the personal and thought provoking questions. I would definitely recommend it!
March 26, 2017
This was such a great study! I wasn't sure about it at first because there were no DVDs and I was used to that with Beth Moore. Plus at the time that I did this I hadn't heard of Kelly Minter. Well now she is one of my favorites as well! I have always loved Ruth and this made me love it more. I had read the book so many times that I wondered just how much more I could see in it, but she helped me look at it in a whole new way. Every now and then I will just go to the book of Ruth and read it through. It's one of the things she had us do towards the end of the study and it's just such a nice reminder of God's love and care for us. I love Ruth and this study!
November 26, 2021
I know some reviews did not enjoy her personal stories, but I think they actually added to the discussions, and allowed for myself and others to reflect on our own past/stories. Even though this is a short book of the Bible, she paces it well, and allows decent amount of thought and reflection so you understand are are able to connect it to your own life, as well as the Gospels. The other ladies I was doing this with also enjoyed. I did try a few of the recipes, but I found my own versions of them were bit tastier.
October 16, 2017
Used this book for a women's bible study. It was my first experience with Kelly Minter. She brings a lot to the table, and although I have studied the book of Ruth before, Kelly truly brought different things to light. Probing questions, personal insight, music links, a deep dive into scripture, and even recipes included, and more. A lot of bang for the buck. Excellent pacing. Enjoyed this study immensely.
March 25, 2020
After Minter's excellent study of 1, 2, and 3 John, I was disappointed in this study of Ruth. It was much "lighter," almost seeming padded with too much personal anecdote in order to reach a 6-week study format. Also, I questioned her impositions of attitudes on the characters and her designation of the book as a romance. The book of Ruth is not a romance. It is a book about God's lovingkindness. It's not a love story; it's a lovingkindness story--and there's a big difference.
August 4, 2021
This was an interesting version of Ruth. I was enthralled by the way Kelly, the author, was able to take you to other scriptures in the Bible which addressed Ruth and her situation. What was interesting was how she compared Leah and Rebekah and Tamar to Ruth. You will have to read the book to see how all of this came together. An excellent read either by yourself or with a small group!
May 21, 2018
Ruth is one of my favorite Bible books my entire life I have read it, studied it, and dreamed about what Ruth went through. Yet, the way Kelly Minter presented the information about Ruth's life was fresh and exciting. It was exactly what my life needed at this moment.
October 8, 2018
I had only ever seen Ruth as a wonderful love story between her and Boaz. I don't think I ever truly saw how Boaz redeeming Ruth and Naomi mirrored so exactly the way Jesus redeems us. Very insightful study.
August 26, 2019
I really like how she breaks it down verse by verse,
takes history and culture into account, and connects it to other verses in the Bible. Ruth has been my favorite by Minter so far. It could do with a few less of her personal stories.
takes history and culture into account, and connects it to other verses in the Bible. Ruth has been my favorite by Minter so far. It could do with a few less of her personal stories.
October 6, 2020
Excellent study in Ruth. I appreciate the other scripture references and the history Kelly brings out. I looked forward to digging in every day. Her video clips were also good. I loved it so much I recommended it to some friends of mine and they will be doing this study as a group.
December 25, 2017
An excellent, in-depth look at the story of Ruth and how it connects to the larger story of God’s redemption. Each verse is considered in great detail and nothing is skimmed over. Lovely study.
March 19, 2018
Good study for women with lots on their plates...not too much to study throughout the week, but not a superficial study either. Has a good balance of story and study.
May 7, 2018
Fun book! I love the way she goes through Ruth and the recipes in the back of each chapter. She does tell a few too many personal stories.
October 23, 2018
This is a wonderful study of the book of Ruth. The only technical change I would make is bigger spaces for writing answers to questions!
June 10, 2019
A good book to help develop a deeper appreciation for how God works in and through our circumstances.
October 15, 2019
Kelly Minter has the most down-to-earth way of writing Bible studies that make you laugh, think and feel deeply. This one was phenomenal and I already ordered another Living Room series book.
June 9, 2020
Absolutely love Kelly Minter.
December 8, 2020
My first Kelly Minter study and I really got a lot out of it. I appreciated learning about the book of Ruth through the eyes of another single woman.
July 5, 2022
Such a good devotion!! Helped me a lot through my trials of getting out of a three year relationship and what it means to be a woman of God looking at the Ruth story.
January 9, 2023
This study changed my life!
March 1, 2023
I loved this study! The homework was a bit much, but I got a lot from it! Because of the study, Ruth is my favorite book in the Bible.
March 30, 2023
I love this story. This is a great study also. I used the 2nd study - a rewrite of the first, with the green cover.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews