texting ruth

Texting the Ruth in love, here's something of our to-and-fro. If you'd like to play - 07729056452.

Rt1 In life we are sometimes sojourning, sometimes remaining, God purposes both and has kindnesses for us to embody in both. If we are Naomi, who is our Ruth to guide and to release? If we are Ruth, who is our Naomi, whom shall we cling to in the time of their need, whom shall we glean with/for in steadfast and pursuing kindness? You, better than I by far, in your gifting to gift the needy with the kind kind of prescencing-to they need.

(Of Rt2) Better slower, left as sheaves for your gleaning, but, of Rt2, are we being taught courtship in Boaz, or charity, for his is ambiguously extravagant generosity

Rt2 This is grace. That gives without telling, ninja gifting, secret blessing that does not seek its own recognition of thanks, such a love that really does prefer the other. Would that I would be. This the agape we are always to embody, & let our agape go beyond Boaz's, let us be kind to those of whom we have heard no good report. Every stranger to be welcomed. Of charity & courtship, we met as strangers once. Agape the foundation of friendship turned romance, let us never forget the agape foundation of our spiralling deeper, higher.

Rt3 Ruth, I ain't saying she's a gold digger, but. For all the feminism one may want from this, how should we, should we make paradigmatic the Boazaic barley bread winner? If yes, it is a Driscollian yes to find your bible-goodjob-house man. And then, if then, to be a little bit scandalous when his heart is a little bit merry? Leaving our romances aside, can we apply this to our Romance: where are Christ's feet, what is His blanket, when is the night? More than that, but now tenuously, in our redemption that Christ bought us, who was our mother-in-law, who are our nearer non-redeemers? We are imaging weighty things for which, graciously, we are, in Christ alone, sufficient.

Rt3 (ii) (via 41 breakfast) Can we speak this of mail-order-brides as possible refugee-redeemers? And other extrapolations.. Jesus is Boaz, we are curled up at his feet dependently. Or, Jesus is the blanket, and on Calvary God suffers the cold of night as Jesus is pulled away by us? Or Jesus is the wine of God's merriment, by which God looks upon us favourably? And the Holy Spirit is the 6 measures of barley, note not yet 7 .. Over egged exegeting. Let us make of wednesday a wedding feast, let us love all as if we have been redeemed, let us love in the strength of his barley down payment.

Rt4 The NIV uses 'redeem' & the GNB 'buy'. A scene such as this causes disquiet not only it its picture of the commodification of women, but all my struggles with monetary analogies for sin & redemption which I want protest. What do we mean when we say we were bought at a cost as it, indeed, mail-order brides? I cannot always get stuck here, forgive me, & a picture of redemption I do see, of pursuit, the restoration of things lost, new & more-than-imagined things, fruit bourn, a story to tell. Love will save the day.