outWORD by Matte Downey

Finding God in the Margins: The Book of Ruth by Carolyn Custis James. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2018. 116 pages. I first heard Carolyn Custis James speak about the book of Ruth on a podcast ( Seminary Dropout ) and I immediately wanted to know more. More about Ruth. More about the cultural backdrop. More about what Custis James has learned in her many years of studying the text. This highly readable book did all of those things. It is meant to be used for personal or group study and includes reflection questions at the end of each chapter. Custis James has done her homework; she provides important cultural and historical information, points out easily overlooked connections and contrasts, and makes an effort to relate the story to our contemporary context. The book has many good qualities. It is accessible as well as spiritually profound and informative without being overly academic or pedantic. She invites the reader to fill in the gaps of the story in an imaginative way, p...

As I sit down to write a blog today, this has been my process thus far. Look at an idea I jotted down several weeks ago. Try to remember why it seemed important and exciting at the time. Get a drink. And a bowl of popcorn. Iron some shirts. Look out the window at the rain. Research flights for an upcoming trip. Get another drink. Look through some scribbled notes that I put in a file. Yes, that might be something. Or not. Decide to have lunch and watch a design show, hoping that will put me in a more creative space. The show is over. Sit in the chair and start typing. Read it over and ask myself, is this really anything? Do I keep going or do I toss it out? Think about alternate careers, perhaps investing in a popcorn company. Eat chocolate. Sit at the computer again and type some more. Decide that writing something today is important, even if I delete most of it tomorrow. Wonder if inspiration is on vacation. Wish I was on vacation. Look out the window. Type more words. Delete ...