Bible Study

Esther 3:6 But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone, for they had told him who the people of Mordecai were; therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus.

Something stood out to me yesterday as I read this.  Haman was angry because Mordecai wouldn't bow to him, and so instead of taking revenge on only Mordecai, he decided to go for his entire people group. 

I've been thinking about Haman's attitude.  He allowed something simple - one man in a whole city of people - to bother him.  His anger seethed inside of him until he was ready to kill a whole group of people, even the babies.

I'd like to say that I never get angry - that I never allow little things to bother me, but it's not true.  Have you ever found yourself over-reacting when things aren't going your way.  I feel like I'm in some kind of time-freeze when that happens.  It's like everyone stops and is frozen in time, while I'm thinking, "What in the world?  Are you seriously getting angry about THAT????"  And maybe they are really frozen, with mouths agape because they are thinking the same thing.   

It's at that point, the Spirit's reminder, that I make a choice - will I choose to ask forgiveness for my outburst or will I try to justify it and continue on ranting and raving? 

Proverbs 16:32 He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city.

I want to be that kind of a person.  But you know what?  Mostly, I don't think that we are automatically like this.  Oh, some people tend to be gentler.  But we all are prideful.  If we don't run into any challenges or any situations that cause our blood to boil, then we won't become this type of person.  It takes practice, beating our body - or mind in this case - into submission. 

Because I desire this attitude, and I'm asking God to help me in this area, I'm pretty sure that I will come across some challenging situations.  I have been.  But here's the thing.  I want to grow, but growth does not take place in a vacuum, a place with no trouble.  So I will pray for patience if that's where I see a need in my life. 

But this year, my one word is gentle.  I want to be gentler in my dealing with the children.  And this is where I see this applying.  The opposite is anger, at least in my case.  And while, I can see many storms brewing because of this desire of my heart, I say, "Bring them on, if the Lord wills.", because they can only cause growth and that is my heart's desire.

Please don't think that I am asking for storms and trouble.  We don't want tornadoes to come through and devastate our home, but we prepare for them.  I guess that is what I want to do.  I want to realize that this is a possibility and be ready to walk faithfully with each one so that I can learn what He has to teach me.

Day 3's reading for me was the rest of Esther chapter 3 and Genesis 7-9