Premium Roast with Ruth 

PREMIUM ROAST WITH RUTH Coffee Cup Bible Series  Four-week study Premium Roast with Ruth helps readers recognize that in an unjust world God is still in control and calls them to self-sacrifice on behalf of others needing justice and mercy.       A “nobody” kind of girl, Ruth is born in the wrong place—Moab. She marries an Israelite at the wrong time—when his nation is experiencing a famine. And she ends up in the wrong circumstances—her husband dies leaving her childless with no Social Security or unemployment insurance. Yet miraculously, this humble widow ends up as the right person in the right place at the right time. After accompanying her bitter, thankless mother-in-law to far-away Bethlehem, Ruth marries a much older man—a relative of her deceased husband. Why? So her mother-in-law can eat. And in the end this selfless act means Ruth’s progeny include Israel’s King David and ultimately the King of Kings Himself. Why? Anything can happen when we choose to follow the one true God and trust in Him. Premium Roast with Ruth, a Coffee Cup Bible Study, considers one of the two great women for whom a book of the Bible is named. Designed for group or individual study, this Bible study demonstrates how God is in control; how He always keeps His promises; how He can reverse impossible circumstances; and how He blesses the faithful more richly and for longer than they could ever imagine. This and all the Coffee Cup Bible Studies books contain Monday-through-Friday Bible study questions, along with devotional thoughts for lighter reading on the weekends. Designed for group or individual study.  Read an excerpt  Camy Tang interviewed me about the series. Read it here.   Wanted: Extraordinary Bible studies for ordinary people, scholarly explanations--but in plain English, history to bring context to biblical stories... Found: Sandra Glahn's remarkable Coffee Cup Series! Glahn sets theological content into a conversational style for any reader to enjoy. Prepare yourself to be delighted yet challenged as you imbibe the truths of the scriptures addressed in this series.  —Kelley Mathews, ThM, coauthor  New Doors in Ministry to Women

For further study:

Notes

• For a good laugh relating to this study
• For notes, visuals, and reflections from a group that went through this study online, click here.
• And here.
• Bible.org's wonderful textual notes on Ruth
• Heather Goodman's Literary Analysis of the Book of Ruth   
• InterVarsity's online Bible study in Ruth
• Dr. Tom Constables notes (.pdf) on The Book of Ruth

Visual Art

• Click here to check out simple works of art by people who did other Coffee Cup Bible studies and interacted visually with the biblical text.   
• For online searches of biblical art, follow this link: Biblical art. 
• See Naomi and Her Daughter-in-Law by Gustave Doré.
• Check out Rembrandt's Boaz and Ruth. 

DVDs:

• The Story of Ruth (1960) with Gregory Peck
• Bible Films Blog:The Story of Ruth Reviewed
• Animated story of Ruth (1966)

Poster:

• Ruth the Moabitess

Fiction:

• The Book of Ruth in a modern setting: Ebony Moon 

Non-Fiction:

• Shattered Dreams by Larry Crabb 
• Slate: A self-described unobservant Jew blogs as he reads the Bible. Here's the link to what he said about the Book of Ruth.
• The Widow and the Queen: Ruth and Esther

• Audio book of Ruth

Music:

• El Shaddai – The name of God found in Ruth, chapter 1. Play Amy Grant’s song by that title.

• El Shaddai is "The Sovereign One," a truth found in "Blessed Be Your Name": “You give and take away”

Maps and Genealogies

• Maps -  A particularly useful map for this study is here.
  
• Genealogy - Jim Belote, cultural anthropologist, put together a great genealogy of the Old Testament. You may just want to bookmark this link because the chart is about 43" long.
  
• One-page genealogy - To insert in your books, Erin T. put together a one page PDF of the genealogy from Noah to Solomon.
  
• Timeline - Available on WordSight.org, this is a textual timeline from Genesis to Revelation. Bookmark this page and use it to search for specific events and/or people in your browser using "Find in this Page..." under the "Edit" option.
  
• Color Timeline - SundaySchoolResources has a great color coded time line. You can reference it on-line or send e-mail to request a PDF print version for free.

Recipe:

• Ruth takes place during the barley harvest, so why not try some Barley Burger Stew: 

• More recipes and info on cooking with barley.

From a reader:

My Bible study group has been studying Ruth. I would like you to explain your comment on page 96: "Many failed to appreciate the deep intellectual sacrifices their wives were making to raise the kids." I would imagine that a mother who chooses to not work outside the home might be taken aback by this comment. It seems harsh and frankly, untrue. 

I'm so glad you wrote, because in writing what I did, I intended to affirm rather than discount the choices of stay-at-home moms. I simply meant that for a number of years (the child-rearing years) many women lay aside the ability to read a complete book uninterrupted, have a complete conversation uninterrupted, or pursue further education. Instead, they choose to do what they consider of more lasting value. But it's still a big sacrifice that is often unappreciated. My own mother
always longed to return to college and become a teacher. Because of her support of him, my dad got his master's, but she was never able to earn the degree she wanted. Why? Because she did such a great job raising five kids. Her dream got sacrificed on the altar of excellent mothering. Still, instead of teaching in a formal setting, in the end she taught a musician, an artist, a home-schooling expert, an author, and a teacher. 

 

Check out all of the Coffee Cup Bible Studies: 

Espresso with Esther

Mocha on the Mount

Solomon Latte (Song of Songs)

Java with the Judges (includes Hannah) 

Cappuccino with Colossians   

Frappé with Philippians

Kona with Jonah

Contact us for more info