BIG IDEA
Because of who God is, we can take risks for others.
MESSAGE NOTES:
WHAT:
For the next few weeks, we’re going to talk about two things: who we are and who God is. We're talking about who we are because many of us have questions and struggles related to who we are and who we're becoming. We're going to talk about who God is because you and I are made in the image of God, our Creator. To understand who we are, we must understand who our Creator is. To guide us through these conversations, each week we're going to look at a different true story from Scripture to discover who God is and who we are too.
SO WHAT:
Life with God isn’t boring and it actually requires us to take risks. Faith itself is a risk. So learning to take risks for the right reasons is an important part of growing up and learning to follow Jesus.
God called Esther to risk it all to save her people.
In the book of Esther, God is never mentioned, not once. So what does this book teach us about God? It shows us:
God makes extraordinary changes with ordinary people.
He is constantly working behind the scenes even when we don’t see it.
He will always make a way, and will never abandon His people.
He has perfect timing.
Esther 4:14 says “For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
Esther doesn’t have to stop and pray about it or ask God to intervene because she knows her God. She knows what He would want her to do and she knows He has already put favor on her to be in this position. Esther shows us:
We can trust God is working on our behalf.
We can trust that He will or has equipped us even when we don’t feel it.
NOW WHAT:
Like Esther we can choose to take a risk for the right reason because we know we have a trustworthy God working behind the scenes for our good. You will be called and asked to take risks to help God protect, rescue and love his children.
The true story of Scripture has never been about us. It has always been, and always will be, about the God who made us.
When we read stories like Esther’s ,we don’t just learn new things about God ,we are transformed by what we learn. It changes who we are. It makes us our best selves.
To really allow the Word of God to transform you try asking these questions when you read:
"What does this tell me about who God is?"
"What does this tell me about how God made me?"
"How can my life be different because I know these things now?"
Because God is a good Creator, we can trust how God has made us.
Because God is powerful and present, we can do difficult things.
Because God is in control, we can embrace the unknown.
Because God is always working through and around us, we can take risks for others.