Esther – Esther was one of my favourite stories when I was a little girl. It is the story of a brave woman who makes a brave choice. Not knowing what would happen she made a decision to help her people even though the consequences could have been tragic for her. She put her hope her God and took a leap of faith. It worked out for Esther. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work out like that for all people who hope and pray but I was inspired none the less and it certainly was a significant story to be reading as I made some decisions myself. Like Exodus, Esther presents us not with an abstract concept or a how to do it set of instructions but with a story, a story we can try to live into as we too take up the challenge to trust in God.

1-2 Peter – I really like this line from Peter. “So clean house! Make a clean sweep of malice and pretense, envy and hurtful talk. You’ve had a taste of God. Now, like infants at the breast drink deep of God’s pure kindness.” From The Message obviously. It is easy to forget how damaging things like pretense and envy can be for our souls. There is not a lot of focus on them really but the Bible reminds us a lot to try to keep them at bay. I also like the motherly image of God that is presented here and I love the idea of drinking deep from God’s kindness. Doesn’t the world need more kindness?