Saturday, March 14, 2009

She Who Has A "Hamans's Ear", Let Her Hear

Wednesday was my final class in my Beth Moore study, Esther - It's Tough Being A Woman


This is a picture of the room where we spent the past 10 weeks digging into God's Word and applying what we learned from Esther's life, to our own lives. 

This is a picture of my sweet leader and me. I have known Libby for years, but it had been a long time since we had seen each other prior to this class.  She had not changed a bit -- she is truly one of the sweetest, godliest ladies that I have ever met. (And did I say cute as a button!) I so appreciate all of her hard work that she put into praying and studying for this class and her willingness to facilitate, week in and week out. She did an awesome job!

As I mentioned in my previous post, we ended our class on Purim (how cool is that!) and so Libby decided that we would have our own little "Feast of Purim" -- complete with Hamantashen, otherwise known as, "Haman's Ears", and noisemakers. The "Haman's Ears" are a triangular-shaped, fruit-filled cookie that are called by this name because they resemble the shape of an an ear. Some Jewish people call them "Haman's Hats" because Haman was said to have worn a three-cornered hat shaped much like these cookies. 

Libby attempted to make the cookies at home, but she said that they did not turn out well. So......Plan B was to quickly call a local Jewish bakery  and amazingly (on the last day of Purim) they managed  to save 50 cookies for our class. God is so good!


The one I tasted was filled with an apricot filling and it was actually pretty tasty. Probably not something that you would want to sit down in front of the TV with a big ole' glass of milk and chow down on, though. (If you want that, you would be better served with these !)  

The true flavor is concealed within the cookie. The fruit center being hidden represents the intrigue associated with Queen Esther and Mordecai's uncovering of Haman's evil plot. The miracle was not revealed at first.

One of the many things that I took away from this awesome study is that I am the Esther in MY own sphere of influence and, guess what ---- you are the Esther in YOUR sphere of influence.  Even though you and I may never enter a place of great public power, we have each been positioned here on this earth "for such a time as this". 

Each of us are called to pass down what we have learned to our descendants. I am to pass down the seeds of the Word that have been sown in me --to entrust them to the next generation and they will entrust them to the next generation....and on and on and on.  We are called to keep passing them down.

"The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law."
Deuteronomy 29:29 NIV


My sweet friends, just like the hidden fruit filling inside the "Haman's Ears", we carry the sweet treasure of Jesus inside of us. I wonder......

How are we doing at passing it down to our sons and daughters? 

Are we keeping it hidden or are we letting others have a "taste" of this sweet treasure on a daily basis?  

God has placed each of us here "for such a time as this".





14 comments:

Stephanie said...

Well good morning :) Thank you for such a wise word this morning! I was wondering how those cookies would turn out...I loved the meaning behind them, thanks for explaining. You spoke a beautiful reminder to my heart about being a woman of influence within my own sphere and with a daughter on the way. I loved that verse.

It always feels so great to finish a study, but there is always a little time afterwards when you miss that regular accountability. I know you must be glad you finished and that you can walk away with a tangible challenge. Thanks for sharing!! Have a great Saturday!

His Doorkeeper said...

I can't wait to do the Esther study...I've heard so much good about it. We are starting Beth Moore's Daniel study in a couple of weeks at our church. Like all of the rest, I'm sure it will be great too!

Have a great week-end!
Blessings!

Denise K. said...

I am so happy that you gained so much from this study!

I am anxious to begin the Esther study, and will enjoy coming back and reading more of what you gained during your time! What a terrific end of class celebration!

By the way, Mimi you are so pretty!!! You wear such perfect colors...you could do a post on fashion and color! (I hope you do one day!)

With love from Colorado, Denise :-)

Rebecca Jo said...

Looks like a great room for a study - a desk & room to write & take notes... how nice!

Sounds like a great way to end the lesson too...

I so want to find a class doing this study now myself!

ThreeGirlyGirls said...

We had our final Esther hoorah too! Wasn't that a great study! I loved it! Glad you enjoyed your time with your girlfriends!! =)

Jenna said...

Loved this so much! I am so glad you enjoyed your class, and that God blessed you abundantly through this study. Awesome!

Thanks for sharing some of your nuggets of knowledge from Esther with us. I love you dearly!

Kendra said...

I just love you my sweet Esther-Gen sister!!

Faith said...

What a neat celebration time it looks like y'all had. I loved hearing the meaning behind the Haman's ears. So glad she was able to get some for y'all. And, what a great challenge to be a woman of influence in our own sphere. I definitely see you as one with the people that God has placed you around.

I'm so thankful for all the ways God spoke to your heart through this time.

Love you so much. I'll see you tomorrow!

Denise said...

The sweet treasure of Jesus inside us, praise God.

Anonymous said...

Oh I'm glad that you were able to finally try the Haman's ears cookies! They looked tasty.

I love the meaning of passing on His word to the next generation. You are truly an inspiration to me and I am glad to have you as a friend :)

Ginger said...

To know that we have been positioned "for such a time as this" is powerful. Even though I have read it and heard it before, the way you wrote it in your post made me really stop and think. Everything we say and do is significant to the next generation. Thank you so much for sharing those words of wisdom.

Denise said...

Wow, it is a small world. You had never told me that you use to live in Red Bank. I did too, I went to Red Bank Junior High. I know where the incline is. Things here have really changed alot. I live in East Brainerd here in Chattanooga. Bless you dear one.

Jacquie said...

Great post, Emilie!! I love how much this study has meant to you.

Those cookies look good... but I'd choose your chocolate chip cookies and a big ole' glass of milk any day!!

Abbi said...

great post!
it's so awesome to see your class looke full! i love to see eager women of God and learning his word!! it's such an inspiration!!