Carri Lynne Pratt
"And when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court,
she won favor in his sight, and he held out to Esther the
golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter." Esther 5:2
This week's focus: In Whom Do You Place Your Trust?
In this one chapter we see the struggle between both good and evil. We also see examples of trusting in God and trusting in oneself. This is huge! When we can trust in God through faith we have "Peace the passes all understanding" Philippians 4:7. When we trust only in ourselves we are generally disheartened and quite often doomed for failure.
During your reading this week please keep a few things in mind:
1) Esther trusts in the Lord's power (evidenced by the fast) and appears before the king (which is against the law). She knows this could be a death sentence for her and yet she goes for the good of her people.
2) Could Esther have been led by God to make a second banquet? Why do you think she chose not to reveal Haman at the first dinner?
3) We can not experience a deep and meaningful relationship with Jesus unless we trust in Him and take chances that place us outside our comfort zone. It is then we see Jesus show up and care for us. We can then also know the power of the Holy Spirit guiding us in unfamiliar territory.
4) Haman is obviously placing his trust in himself, his position, his power and his relationship with the king. His is full of pride for who he is, and we all know what the Bible says about pride, "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." Proverbs 16:18
Spiritual Discipline: Scripture Memorization
This week please memorize the following verse to remind you to trust in God:
and lean not on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He will make your paths straight."
and He will make your paths straight."
Proverbs 3:5-6
No comments:
Post a Comment