Do Not Be Afraid
A small group of girls at church and I are studying the book of Esther using Beth Moore’s “It’s Tough to Be a Woman” series. I came out of this past week’s study with few of Moore’s thoughts to share. For context, the lesson was about Esther’s decision-making process of whether or not to risk her life going before the King and asking for the Jews to be spared. The Scripture for this week was Esther 4:11-17.
No one is born brave, but we can become courageous.
Don’t confuse denial with courage. You look it (whatever it is you’re facing) in the face and deny it’s victory over you.
The most frequent command in the Bible is … do not be afraid. (Hmmm…. More than any other “thou shalt not” God tells us not to fear. That demonstrates its significance, I think.)
Everyone has something on his or her mind and needs someone to say “don’t be afraid.”
Be encouraged! If (fill in the blank with whatever your fear is) happens God is going to take care of me/it.
(This week’s study, by the way, reminded me of my earlier thoughts on being afraid of dying on a mission trip.)
Finally, my favorite verse from this week though is Esther 4:14
“Who knows? Maybe you were made queen for just such a time as this.”
I believe in that statement, that so many times, in the Bible and in modern times, individuals were placed in a certain position or location for a specific time and purpose. All we have to do is obey.
