Esther: It's Tough Being a Woman Bible Study

Esther: It’s Tough Being a Woman by Beth Moore

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was my second Beth Moore study and I really enjoyed it. I certainly got more out of it than I thought I would. Really, the study of Esther?? I had read that book in the Bible before and didn't really get much out of it. Boy did I miss A LOT! If you've never experienced a Beth Moore bible study, you need to. The book, along with the accompanying DVD is awesome. I could listen to her all day long.

Some of the things captured in the study were:

*The book of Esther is about the redemption and unexplainable survival of the Jews.

*It's tough being a woman . . .
in another woman's shadow.
in a world where beauty is a treatment.
in a mean world.
thrown a gian size weight.
in the tight fist of fear.
who can balance passion with patience.
who feels responsible for the "how."

*Our human nature not only sets us up for selfishness but to feel uncomfortable and incompetent when faced with someone who needs more than we have.

*Sometimes God wants to show us what we can do rather than let us find someone who can do it for us.

*We can love God and still be liked by people.

*I believe in the sun, even whin it is not shining. I believe in love, even when I do not feel it. I believe in God, even when He is silent.

*Look at the following comparison: In 1941 the Nazis forced the Jews in Poland into the Warsaw Ghetto. This became the unlikely breeding ground for an insurrection against Hitler's Nazi forces in 1943. The vastly outnumbered and overpowered Jews actually held the evil giant back for a time. The story of Esther and Purim were not lost on the Nazis, who killed any Jew in the prison camps possessing a copy of Esther. Yet the incarcerated Jews wrote copies of it from memory. The story of Esther was most precious to the Jews facing mass death, because in it they found assurance and hope that they, not their enemy, would triumph. Had Hitler had his way, the Jews would have been completely exterminated.

*Here is a quote from a Rabbi in Jerusalem regarding the holocaust: "Our Deliverer did indeed come. He just came a little later than we expected. Had our enemy had his way, none of us would have survivied."

*But trust reverses the detours of adversity into highways of destiny.