The Dwelling Richly Podcast

Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 7 Esther 6:1-5

Faithful & Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 7 Esther 6:1-5
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Mordecai’s humility and patience have not only been rewarded, they’ve been rewarded publicly. Had Mordecai received recognition immediately it would have changed everything. Consider that moment you’ve been waiting for. Think about the recognition you’ve been wanting. Are you just? Are you seeking the honor of God? If so, be patient. Just like God’s timing is perfect in delivering you from the trial, so is his timing perfect in blessing your faithfulness. Remember, “God’s delays are not God’s denials.” Trust his timing in every aspect of your life, “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (Ps 27)
Be sure to join me for the next day in our “Faithful and Fearless” lesson!
The Dwelling Richly community Bible study meets at La Mirada Christian Church every other week: Mondays, 6:30pm or Tuesdays, 9:30am, February 5-April 30, 2019 Register online http://www.LMCCWomen.Eventbrite.com
DOWNLOAD THE STUDY: https://www.jennifergrichmond.com/dwelling-richly-bible-study/
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Share any prayer requests in the comment section below!
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Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 6 Esther 5:9-14

Faithful & Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 6 Esther 5:9-14
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“Pride is the only known disease that makes everybody sick except the person who has it.” (Anonymous). Haman’s would be humorous if it weren’t so sickening. He is not only satisfied with the potential demise of his enemy; he is pleased by it. He, like all who oppose God, seeks to lift himself up to glory while lifting others up to shame. God wants the exact opposite for us. “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Instead, Haman delights himself in – well – himself. The malice Haman has is like yeast in dough. It thoroughly permeates. Malice in your heart, no matter how much you’re egged on by others, will do the same. Pray that God would reveal any tendency you may have to pridefully seek your own way and to try to get others on your side. Delight in God, not in yourself.
Be sure to join me for the next day in our “Faithful and Fearless” lesson!
The Dwelling Richly community Bible study meets at La Mirada Christian Church every other week: Mondays, 6:30pm or Tuesdays, 9:30am, February 5-April 30, 2019 Register online http://www.LMCCWomen.Eventbrite.com
DOWNLOAD THE STUDY: https://www.jennifergrichmond.com/dwelling-richly-bible-study/
F O L L O W:
https://www.Instagram.com/jennifergrichmond
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https://www.Facebook.com/jenniferrichmondblog
Share any prayer requests in the comment section below!
M Y C H U R C H:
http://lamiradachurch.com/
B I B L E: Bible App: https://www.bible.com/app

Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 5 Esther 5:6-9a

Faithful & Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 5 Esther 5:6-9a
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It’s been three days since Esther began her fast, and now, she has gone from fasting with concubines to feasting with the king. Not only is she feasting, but the royal scepter and up to half of the king’s kingdom have been extended to her. If a pagan king like Ahasuerus is willing to extend this kind of lavish grace, how much more will our good God?! Clearly, our Heavenly Father not only can but wants to extend grace to us. The Word of God is full of reminders of this kind of lavish grace. Never forget that as a child of the King you can come boldly before the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16) and ask boldly in Jesus’ name with eager anticipation, “how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”
Be sure to join me for the next day in our “Faithful and Fearless” lesson!
The Dwelling Richly community Bible study meets at La Mirada Christian Church every other week: Mondays, 6:30pm or Tuesdays, 9:30am, February 5-April 30, 2019 Register online http://www.LMCCWomen.Eventbrite.com
DOWNLOAD THE STUDY: https://www.jennifergrichmond.com/dwelling-richly-bible-study/
F O L L O W:
https://www.Instagram.com/jennifergrichmond
https://www.YouTube.com/c/jenniferrichmond
https://www.Facebook.com/jenniferrichmondblog
Share any prayer requests in the comment section below!
M Y C H U R C H:
http://lamiradachurch.com/
B I B L E: Bible App: https://www.bible.com/app

Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 4 Esther 1:13-22

Faithful & Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 4 Esther 1:13-22
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Anyone looking at the circumstances of Esther’s rise from orphaned Jewess to honored queen would think she’s one lucky girl. If this story took place today, she might even have her own Instagram account and fashion line. What the world may see a type of Cinderella story, Mordecai saw as something far more serious. He couldn’t have known for what purpose precisely Esther was being elevated, but he knows all along it was significant. How would it change your behavior today if you lived with that kind of confidence and seriousness about where God is leading you? Your job? Your family? Your encounters? Perhaps they are not just things that are happening to you. Perhaps, you are being placed for “such a time as this.” What if you lived each day knowing that as God moves hearts of kings, he’s moving in the hearts of those around you as well? Consider seriously taking time to fast for wisdom in your circumstances. Fast to know and do the will of God. Fast to demonstrate your faithfulness and reliance on God. Fast also to plead your case before God, your Heavenly Father, who “withholds no good thing from the righteous.” (Psalm 84)
Be sure to join me for the next day in our “Faithful and Fearless” lesson!
The Dwelling Richly community Bible study meets at La Mirada Christian Church every other week: Mondays, 6:30pm or Tuesdays, 9:30am, February 5-April 30, 2019 Register online http://www.LMCCWomen.Eventbrite.com
DOWNLOAD THE STUDY: https://www.jennifergrichmond.com/dwelling-richly-bible-study/
F O L L O W:
https://www.Instagram.com/jennifergrichmond
https://www.YouTube.com/c/jenniferrichmond
https://www.Facebook.com/jenniferrichmondblog
Share any prayer requests in the comment section below!
M Y C H U R C H:
http://lamiradachurch.com/
B I B L E: Bible App: https://www.bible.com/app

Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 3 Esther 4:10-17

Faithful & Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 3 Esther 4:10-17
#dwellingrichly #lmccwomen #biblestudy
Be sure to join me for the next day in our “Faithful and Fearless” lesson!
The Dwelling Richly community Bible study meets at La Mirada Christian Church every other week: Mondays, 6:30pm or Tuesdays, 9:30am, February 5-April 30, 2019
Register online http://www.LMCCWomen.Eventbrite.com
When you share, use our hashtags: #LMCCWomen #DwellingRichlyBibleStudy
DOWNLOAD THE STUDY: https://www.jennifergrichmond.com/dwelling-richly-bible-study/
F O L L O W:
https://www.Instagram.com/jennifergrichmond
https://www.YouTube.com/c/jenniferrichmond
https://www.Facebook.com/jenniferrichmondblog
Share any prayer requests in the comment section below!
M Y C H U R C H:
http://lamiradachurch.com/
B I B L E: Bible App: https://www.bible.com/app

Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 2 Esther 4:1-9

Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 2 Esther 4:1-9
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While Susa and 127 other provinces were in fear and fasting for God to deliver them from their fate, where was God? While Mordecai was messaging, Esther and Hathach were explaining it all, where was God? Consider that question right now as you think about the trial you are going through. Where is God when we’re panicking like the Jews in Persia? Where is He when we’re mourning like Mordecai? Clueless like the king? Distressed like Esther? Is He drumming His fingers waiting for all the people and circumstances to come together? Is He holding out until we pray the right prayer? Fast enough? Mourn loudly enough? I don’t think so. I think God is right there with us in the panic, the mourning, the fasting, and fear. David wrote, “The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry. When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted    and saves the crushed in spirit.” He is not far. He’s close. He’s ready. Trust and wait for his timing. While you wait, it’s ok to mourn, cry, even fast. Beg for His favor, plead with Him to bring your answer, and trust Him to do it according to His will.
Be sure to join me for the next day in our “Faithful and Fearless” lesson!
The Dwelling Richly community Bible study meets at La Mirada Christian Church every other week: Mondays, 6:30pm or Tuesdays, 9:30am, February 5-April 30, 2019
Register online http://www.LMCCWomen.Eventbrite.com
When you share, use our hashtags: #LMCCWomen #DwellingRichlyBibleStudy
DOWNLOAD THE STUDY: https://www.jennifergrichmond.com/dwelling-richly-bible-study/
F O L L O W:
https://www.Instagram.com/jennifergrichmond
https://www.YouTube.com/c/jenniferrichmond
https://www.Facebook.com/jenniferrichmondblog
Share any prayer requests in the comment section below!
M Y C H U R C H:
http://lamiradachurch.com/
B I B L E: Bible App: https://www.bible.com/app

Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 1 Read Esther ch 4-6

Faithful & Fearless: Lesson 5/Day 1 Read Esther
#dwellingrichly #lmccwomen #biblestudy
Reminder: One of the goals of this Bible study is to help you develop skills of a good student of the Word. Read Esther straight through without referring to any study notes or commentaries. Use only the maps and references in your Bible. It may be tempting to read notes or commentaries, but do the work of your own personal study. Pray for wisdom and understanding as you read.
Try This: Don’t just read Esther, read Esther aloud. Read it to your spouse or kids or read it with a friend. You’ll find it really changes the experience. Enjoy!
As you read...
Write your questions and key observations
Use the line on the left side of the following notes pages to outline the timeline of Esther. Note especially pivotal moments in the narrative. Note in particular, “just so happen” moments – coincidences in timing, placement, people, events, etc.
Complete the timeline chart on page 8 during this read-through or as you read through your lessons
Highlight: people (brown), places (green), times/dates (pink), God’s name (blue), phrases of note (orange / yellow)
Locate places on a map https://www.bible-history.com/maps/maps/map_persian_empire.html
Be sure to join me for the next day in our “Faithful and Fearless” lesson!
The Dwelling Richly community Bible study meets at La Mirada Christian Church every other week: Mondays, 6:30pm or Tuesdays, 9:30am, February 5-April 30, 2019
Register online http://www.LMCCWomen.Eventbrite.com
When you share, use our hashtags: #LMCCWomen #DwellingRichlyBibleStudy
DOWNLOAD THE STUDY: https://www.jennifergrichmond.com/dwelling-richly-bible-study/
F O L L O W:
https://www.Instagram.com/jennifergrichmond
https://www.YouTube.com/c/jenniferrichmond
https://www.Facebook.com/jenniferrichmondblog
Share any prayer requests in the comment section below!
M Y C H U R C H:
http://lamiradachurch.com/
B I B L E: Bible App: https://www.bible.com/app

Connecting the Dots to Jesus - Matthew 22:41-46

Connecting the Dots to Jesus - Matthew 22:41-46

Faithful and Fearless: Lesson 4/Days 9 and 10 Esther 3:7-15

Faithful & Fearless: Lesson 4/Days 9 and 10 Esther 3:7-15
While Haman and Ahasuerus are drinking it up, God’s people – actually all of Susa – are in confusion. Terror and fear are spreading across all of Persia. This evil edict schedules the genocide of the Jews and is being carried from province to province. Haman isn’t the first to make plans against God’s people.
The situation may look terribly hopeless, but God is making a way.
All through history men have plotted to kill the Jews. What’s interesting, is that while racism exists between all ethnicities and that racism may well show up in evil and destructive ways, annihilation is the repeated plot of evil people through time against the Jews – not just enslaving, or persecuting, or killing off – but total annihilation. Haman is just one tool in a long line that Satan has used since the beginning to cut off God’s people. Hitler didn’t just want to kill Jews, he set out to exterminate them. The situation may look terribly hopeless, but God is making a way  
The former and current presidents of Iran (modern Persia) have literally called for its people to curse Israel and have vowed to exterminate all Jews and “wipe Israel off the map” (Ahmadinejad, president of Iran, 2005.) Isn’t this exactly how evil men behave? And yet, God’s unchanging word is clear: “The wicked plot against the righteous...but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he knows their day is coming.”
We may not feel the panic of persecution today, but we need to.
As throughout time, “Cast your burden on the Lord,” David wrote in Psalm 55, “and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.” We may not feel the panic of persecution today, but we need to. We need to feel the burden, the fear, the desperation because God’s people – Jew and Christian alike –  are being persecuted* this very day around the world. We must not brush off the reality with apathy like King Ahasuerus did any more than we would personally plot do destroy God’s people.
This is not to say that we live with that burden on us, not at all! We have to feel it, be aware of it, and faithfully give it to God who is ready to take our burdens.
There is only one remedy, one relief, one redeemer for all of this, and that tale is even older than the Garden. It’s our Savior and God – Jesus the Messiah.
The week I wrote this study over 100 Christians were slaughtered in their homes and churches in Nigeria. The week before that, hundreds more believers in China were killed, jailed, or punished for meeting as Christians. By the time you read this, thousands more will have been tortured, jailed, or killed. God’s people are targets for destruction. Persecution and plotting against God’s people is a tale as old as time. It’s as old as the Garden and Satan’s plot to overthrow Heaven itself. There is only one remedy, one relief, one redeemer for all of this and that tale is even older than the Garden. It’s our Savior and God – Jesus the Messiah. Although God’s name is never mentioned in Esther, he is present.
Although God is not heard, he is speaking as He commands His angels to move on our behalf. God was moving and active – like his own Word – revealing the truth and preparing the way for salvation. In the midst of the confusion in Susa God was orchestrating all people and events so that His people would be saved. God is doing that today. He’s active in the world on behalf of the persecuted believers in Nigeria, China, and Syria. Our part is to be active as well not apathetic. Helen Keller said, “Science may have found a cure for most evils, but it has found no remedy for the worst of them all – the apathy of human beings.” (My Religion, p162) We cannot condemn Haman or any evil if we are not willing to confess the apathy in our own hearts. Confess that today. Repent and pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Pray for the hearts of all who love God and claim to follow Jesus Christ to truly love and follow Him faithfully and fearlessly. ~ Jennifer Richmond
*https://www.opendoorsusa.org/christian-persecution/