Captivate: It's Tough Being A Woman: The Whole Megillah

      This past Monday welcomed the first ladies bible study of the fall semester. We are so excited to be using Beth Moore's video study over the book of Esther, appropriately themed, "It's Tough Being a Woman".


      Diaspora:
              1. to scatter seed
              2. the movement, migration, or scattering of a people away from an established or ancestral homeland.

     Literally, calling Esther a Diaspora story refers to the scattering of the Jews like seed outside of Palestine after their release from exile in Babylon. We may not feel like we can easily relate to what life was like under the King of Persia, but we certainly can relate to what it feels like to be somewhere we dont belong. Scattered and far from our comfort zones.

Just like the Jews were out of place in the secular and lavish Persia, Esther doesn't easily fit the mold of the other books of the Bible. Esther bears a few very unique properties that distinguish it from it's biblical counterparts.

The first, is the total absence of any reference to God. At first glance, it may seem that if it doesnt mention the Lord then the book of Esther may not belong in the scriptures. However, Beth is quick to point out that our God is a mysterious God and doesn't need to sign His name to make His mark.
She continues to say that because of the lack of 'the character God' we see in other stories, we are forced to look at the tools He uses to make Himself known in other ways. Another unique characteristic is simply the God-ordained emphasis on human responsibility. Scripture is God-breathed, so we are forced to wonder why He so purposefully left His name out and emphasized the names of those so much lesser than He.

These two unique design characteristic challenges our faith, but offers hope. We are force to face the questions like "what do we do when the Red Sea doesn't part?", when God doesn't remove our obstacles in one fell swoop. Instead, we find great theology in not seeing Him, but knowing He is there. And instead we see traces of Him in the lives of everyday people.

"Maybe there is no bigger miracle than God working in the natural realm, God working mightily even in us"

The third unique characteristic abut the book of Esther is simply that the title bears a woman's name. Woman were made to complement men, and in that are very different from their partners. Beth warns us not to forget that this book is about a woman who had all the struggles and 'stuff'' of a woman.

In a survey she conducted on over 400 women of different backgrounds and beliefs, Beth collected lists of the toughest things that being a woman entails. There are many blessings to be afforded by these glimpses into those women's lives. The first revealed to us this week is simply that we women have these challenges in common. The following are the top three most common responses from her survey, how well can you relate?

Yielding
Balance
Hormones

We would encourage you over the rest of this week to really dwell on this question, and when you have your list. Know that you are not alone in your struggles. We deal with it too. And so did Esther.

The session ended with a glimpse into what we will be studying in the daily personal study sessions over the week. We hope to see you next week as we discuss how we've wrestled with and learned from our first scenario.