We often think of blessings for meals, weddings, or births. But their use in the Bible is far richer and diverse than that. Even in bad times, there is a place for blessing prayers. Join Dr. Mark McDowell as he explores these prayers in Ruth.
At the climax of the book of Ruth, we find the sixth blessing in a row! This one is for a marriage. What can we learn about blessings and marriage in this prayer study that we can apply to our own prayers?
In this scene from the book of Ruth, Ruth acts in an extremely bold way to obtain a husband and safety. Shocking in someways, but he responds with a blessing on her. What does this mean, how can we understand prayer? What can we learn they can in our prayers? Join Dr. Mark McDowell as he studies this prayer from Ruth 3.
There are many ways to add richness to our prayers. One is to introduce structure and themes. Dr. Mark McDowell explorers this idea by examining these blessing prayers in the book of Ruth.
Join Dr. Mark McDowell as he explores how someone’s prayer can reveal something about their character. And how we can use prayer to grow our character. From the book of Ruth.
Join Dr. Mark McDowell as he continues this study of prayer from the book of Ruth. This passage is a prayer vow, perhaps unusual today but not in the ancient world. What do we learn about vows and how we can we offer them in our own practice of prayer?
The book of Ruth has more prayers for the number of verses and any other narrative book of the Bible. Join Dr. McDowell as he explorers this first prayer. What can we learn from it about our own prayers?
Context In the book of Ruth, God never speaks or performs any direct miracles. But there are nine prayers in this short story—more prayers per amount of text than any other narrative book in the Bible except Esther (a book which never even mentions God).1 Ruth is a beautiful book and a pleasant respite after…
After exploring every prayer in the book of judges, Dr. Mark McDowell offers a summary of the prayers found there.
Sometimes, we fail in life—perhaps spectacularly. We let down ourselves, others, and even God. How should we pray in such a situation? Join Dr. Mark McDowell as he explores this prayer by Samson found in the book of Judges.
