Missing What God Has For You

Last week, we saw from the life of Esther how we can make the most of God-given opportunities. We do that by putting feet to our faith, seeking God’s favor, being selfless and strategic, and obeying God even when we can’t see the end of the path. Today, we see the other possibility of how to miss out on what God is doing. Haman stands in sharp contrast to Esther.

I. When you are driven by . (9)

•  Notice how quickly Haman goes from full joy to explosive . 
• Some believers are incredibly inconsistent in their . Their reactions are showing.
• We need to ask ourselves, “What does it take to our joy?”
• We respond emotionally to things that are to us.
• The only place you’ll find true joy is in Jesus Christ.  (John 15:11)

II. When you are fueled by . (10-14)

• One who is not right with God is one who is controlled by emotions and .
• “Pride is one of the greatest sins because it makes us treat God’s gifts as if they rightfully belonged to us and were created by us. Our pride robs God of His right to be acknowledged as the source of all the good we know and enjoy.”
• James 4:6 reminds us that God doesn’t just look favorably on the , He helps them by giving more grace.
• Trials and hurts are supposed to you, not define you.

III. When you listen to bad . (14)

•  Instead of telling him to down and get his head together, Haman’s advisors encouraged him to kill another human being.
• They should have him of his anger and pride. 
• Paul Tripp says that because of pride our “self-perception is as accurate as a carnival mirror.” My view of my attitude is .
• We all need others who can see where we are wrong and will lovingly and graciously God’s Word into our lives.
• Left to ourselves, emotion, pride, and bad advice will cause us to build instruments of our own .