We have been introduced to Esther and her adopted father Mordecai. Mordecai was one of the captives of the war with Babylon which Judah lost, along with his cousins who were the parents of Esther. Esther herself likely was born in captivity in Persia, but there is no ‘birthright citizenship’ in this evil empire. Esther and Mordecai are Jews, but the Jews are among dozens of ethnic groups that have been captured and enslaved by the Persians. The Jews are keeping a low profil

Sometimes our prayers are driven by desire; we want something to happen and hope that God will grant our wish. Sometimes our prayers are driven by concern; we want someone that we love to be blessed in the face of a threat to health or life. And sometimes our prayers are driven by exasperation; we have been working in the Lord’s service, but no one seems to care. Worse yet, instead of believing the Bible, some cynics seem to think that showing love and compassion for others

What does God have in store for the woman Esther, a captive Jewish slave in one of the strongest and most extensive empires to ever exist? ”Now there was a Jew in the citadel of Susa whose name was Mordecai … a Benjaminite who had been carried away from Jerusalem among the captives carried away with King Jeconiah of Judah … (by) King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon…. He had brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his cousin, for she had neither father nor mother; the young woman was

Did that Call to Worship seem familiar to you? It should; it was déjà vu all over again since it was the same as last week. I intentionally had us repeat it because what I want to talk to you about today is built on what Pastor was teaching last week. In this highly connected world, are you getting Too Much Information? Too Much Information to sort it all out? Too Much Information to know what’s true and what’s a scam? Too Much Information to know what to do? Do you risk an

One of the practices to begin with in good Bible study is to see what words, concepts, or themes are repeated. In this chapter, the word for ‘heart’ and ‘hearts’ is repeated. In fact, it appears 40 times in the book of Jeremiah, more than any other book of the Bible, except Psalms and Proverbs. In Jeremiah, God says that Judah is close to his heart; but Judah has not kept God in their heart. God says that Judah’s hearts need to be circumcised. This metaphor was stated earli