Esther Reading Plan – W9D3

Check out all the previous Esther readings here.

Esther Reading Plan | Week 9 | Day 3

Prayer

Take a deep breath in and let it out slowly. Do this three times. This helps you be more present and aware. Ask God to open your eyes to wonderful things from His word today.

Bible Reading: 1 Peter 5:7

Read this verse three times slowly.

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Reflection & Questions

We have been reflecting this week on the fact that Esther went to King Xerxes with her need. She was fearful of disturbing the king. In a massive difference, God wants to be disturbed. He wants to hear from us. In our verse today, Peter says, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

This is a good verse to dwell on the meaning of each word.

“Cast” – the dictionary defines “cast” as throwing something forcefully. God wants us to go to him with our hurts, our worries, our cares and to do so with abandon, laying them at his feet. Not holding back.
“All” – God doesn’t want us to filter our worries. There’s nothing too small, too large, too repetitive to bring to God.
“Your anxiety” – This is a beautiful acknowledgement of the individual nature of worry and troubles here. We’re to bring to God what is bothering us personally. It different for each one.
“On Him” – There’s a transfer of the weight of the worries and troubles here. From our shoulders to God. We’re to cast them onto Him. He has big shoulders and he can carry them.
“Because he cares” – we don’t cast in blind hope that God might do something about it; we cast
“For you” – Peter uses the singular “you” in this verse. God cares for you individually. He loves YOU. He cares for YOU.

So cast your cares upon Him. He’s a very good catcher.

Do you feel there are requests that are too small or too large to bring to God? Why or why not?
List out your worries or cares today. Don’t filter them. List them all, small or large. Now bring them to God in prayer.

Prayer

Pray in response to today’s reading.

Worship Song

You might use this song today to worship Jesus today:

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Prepare to Meet with Jesus

Find a quiet place to read and pray. Make sure there are no devices around that will distract you. Pray and ask God to help you concentrate. Ask Him to help you understand what you read.

Bible Reading: Esther 7:5-7a

Read these verses three times slowly.

King Xerxes asked Queen Esther, “Who is the man who has dared to do such a thing? And where is he?” Esther said, “The man hates us! He’s our enemy! He’s this evil Haman!” Then Haman was terrified in front of the king and queen. The king got up. He was very angry. He left his wine and went out into the palace garden.

Reflection & Questions

WOW! Talk about a surprise for two of the guys at the dinner table! I guess you could say that the party is over. Xerxes is ANGRY and has to take a minute out in his garden and Haman is left quaking in his boots.

Have you ever been so angry that you just had to take a minute away from everyone? I know I have. It helps me breathe and think through my feelings. I often talk to God when I’m off on my own so that He can help me calm down and handle the situation the right way.

It’s easy to react in anger and do something that we might regret. For example, when someone says something rude to you, do you feel tempted to shove them or say something rude back to them? Before you react in that way, remember that it might be best to walk away and pray that God helps you to calm down. Then you can think about the best way to deal with the rude dude so that you won’t get in trouble too.

Think of a time when someone said or did something rude to you. How did you react?
Can you think of some good ways that you can handle your frustration?

Pray

Ask God to help you be in control of your emotions. Also ask him for forgiveness for when you have acted out of anger and have hurt another person. Ask him to help you come up with better ways to deal with your frustrations.

Check out more Bible Reading Plans here.

Questions?

Ed Applegate