Shadow Blessings: the story of Esther

“Patience in the Shadow”

Esther 1-2

…behind the dim unknown, 

Standeth God within the shadow,

keeping watch above his own.

“The Present Crisis”—by James Russell Lowell

1. Awaken to God's PRESENCE

Meet the Characters:

Mordechai:  Esther’s older cousin, possibly uncle

Esther (Hadassah): Orphaned Hebrew girl, raised by Mordechai

King Xerxes: King of Persia, 485-465 BC

Queen Vashti: Queen of Persia 

"God swings some mighty big doors on little hinges." - anonymous

“But if I go to the east, he is not there;

if I go to the west, I do not find him.

When he is at work in the north,

I do not see him;

when he turns to the south,

I catch no glimpse of him.

But he knows the way that I take;

when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.

Job 23:8-10

2. Acknowledge your dependence upon God's Provision

"The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord; He directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases."  Proverbs 21:1

"God has brought you into the kingdom for just such a time as this." Esther 4:14b

"Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good gift is from the Father." James 1:16-17

“For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:9