“Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.” Romans 13:8
I mentioned the
other day that I had finally gotten around to cleaning off my desk. Now, as I sat
there, I could at least SEE the desktop, which honestly made me smirk with a
little pride! Suddenly, my eyes were drawn to the stuff I had stacked upright
at the BACK of the desk. If the stuff on the top had been my ‘GET TO’ pile,
THIS area had become my ‘DON’T EVER FORGET’ collection. As I gazed at one
particular envelope, something in the back of my mind sent an alarm to the
front… and I freaked!!!
You know how it
goes because all of us have done it. I held in my hand a bill that was SUPPOSED
to have been paid a MONTH ago! In the 30 years I have live in this house it
only happened 2 other times. Once, we came home to no electricity. Another
time… no water! BOTH times I felt like a fool trying to EXPLAIN myself to the
people in charge of collections. Even as I tried to excuse my failure over the
phone, I could sense them rolling their eyes and thinking, “yea, yea Mr. Loser…
I’ve heard that one before!” Regardless of the excuse, I had become a bona fide
‘infractor!’
I clearly
remembered paying this months bills WEEKS ago. But for some reason I had ‘held
off’ on this one. OOPS! And SILLY! Because with online banking, paying bills in
2019 is rather simple. When the bill comes, I can easily ‘log on’ to my
account, enter the amount and hit ‘Pay!’ I can do it from my phone, and for
MOST accounts, I can even set up ‘Auto-pay’ so I don’t have to SEE a bill to
worry about forgetting. Then my thoughts turned to goats!
In the Old
Testament, payment for sin came like my utility bills… varying and often! One
sin may require the blood of a dove. Another a goat… or even a bull! One
thing was for certain, no matter how much blood you paid, you were guaranteed
MORE would be required… and SOON! My silly mind tried to figure out how the
Israelites might have worked out ‘Auto-pay’ for goat sacrifices… which became
too gruesome… even for me! Then I thought of Jesus!
When Jesus Christ
died on the cross over 2000 years ago He “Paid In Full” ALL of my debts! Past,
present and future! Which takes ‘Auto-pay’ to a whole new level! Did yo uget
that? Jesus paid ‘ALL of my debts,’ except ONE! As I wrote that, my head
dropped in sorrow because, loving YOU is an outstanding debt that I have, too
often, forgotten to pay! But as quickly as sorrow came…it went! Because my
loving Lord assured me that there will be NO ‘Past Due’ notice with this debt.
His love to me, and THROUGH me will NEVER be shut off! It’s as if He hands me
His credit Card and says… “Let me help you with this!” And friends… that is one
card you NEVER want to ‘leave home without!’
“Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.” Matthew 13:43
Yesterday, I was
sitting in a room full of pastors and leaders as they talked about their
various ministries in the community. I was setting beside a ‘priestly’ friend
of mine and did what I USUALLY do in settings such as this. Instead of
listening to every word of the speaker, I leaned over, tapped my friend on the
shoulder and asked him a question. I KNEW I had committed a grievous error when
the next words out of my mouth were, “HUH?” I felt like a dummy!
I own a REALLY nice
set of ‘state of the art’ hearing aids. It took a long time for me to realize
that I needed them and even longer to finally make the appointment to get them.
Their expense ALONE should be a painful reminder to ‘never leave home without
them! But I have… far too often! Then, when I am in conversation, just like
Pavlov’s dog, my head immediately drops in shame when I HEAR the word “HUH?”
escape my lips. What kind of fool forgets something so important? You guessed
it!
I try to
rationalize my forgetfulness. It is true that I DO spend a LOT of time
alone…studying, praying, working around the house or church… resting! When
alone, I don’t NEED assistance in hearing MYSELF! I hear ME ALL the time… and
sometimes I nauseate myself! But when I KNOW I am going into a meeting or to
talk with someone, I NEED to have those hearing aids if I want to listen and
communicate well. Nodding yes to an unknown statement someone said, in
counseling, can be a VERY bad thing! I know… I’ve done it!
When I read this
verse today I smiled. It is a good one to me because, to some people’s chagrin,
‘I’ am one of ‘The Righteous’ this verse talks about. And one day ‘I’ will
shine like Jesus says. But this verse starts with the word ‘then!’ Which means
it is connected to a something before it. So I looked it up! Verses before this
one say, “at the end of the
age… the Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed
out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the blazing
furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Do you hear
that?
Children
are good a playing the ‘nya nya’ game…a Japanese term for the sound of a cat.
“Nya Nya.. my house is better than your-ors! My daddy’s stronger than
your-ors!” The purpose is to make the other person FEEL bad… even if the
statement isn’t true. But THIS verse isn’t meant for comparative purposes. It
is a FACT of judgment that should give even the NEWEST Christian a supernatural
motivation!
EVERYONE
has ears. That is the point Jesus is trying to make. If we HAVE them… He
EXPECTS us to make USE of them! To LISTEN and APPLY what He, the Lord of the
Universe, is saying. The war of the universe is raging and casualties are
stacking up! If I have been redeemed, I have no right or time to ‘nya-nya’
ANYONE. The Business of the Father MUST become MY business. And HIS business is
to seek and save those who haven’t heard the Good News yet. THAT would make
ME…a HEARING AID! To forget THAT… would make me a fool!
Would you try something? Silence your phone, turn off the music, and set a timer for two minutes. Sit silently until the alarm goes off. I’m happy to wait on you while you try this.
How was that? As I was writing this, I tried it myself and was reminded once again how difficult silence can be. We are not comfortable with silence, but silence is so powerful.
Through the team at EmotionallyHealthy.org, I learned of a fascinating example that brings out tremendous emotion in me every single time I watch it.1
Researchers brought in sets of parents and adult kids to have them experience the power of emotional silence. They were brought into a sterile room, one parent-child pair at a time, and were asked to stand facing each other for four minutes. Perfectly quiet, perfectly still, with no distractions for four full minutes. Of course, when NBC aired the project, they didn’t show the entire four minutes, but they did show the powerful emotions that rose to the surface simply because of the space provided by silence.
A mother told of how she looked into her son’s face and thought about the moment he was born.
A son told of how much gratitude he felt, thinking about how much his mother had sacrificed for him.
A father told of how much potential he saw in his daughter’s future.
It’s such a simple but profound concept. Why? Because we are not comfortable with silence, yet it is so powerful!
Emotionally healthy leaders turn down the noise low enough and long enough to allow space for curiosity.
As difficult or uncomfortable as this might be, it absolutely requires the habit of getting quiet. And it can’t be a onetime thing. It must become part of your daily or at the very least weekly routine in life.
Silence is scarce. Honestly, it might even be nonexistent. When was the last time you sat in complete silence? Having five little kids has made silence an absolute impossibility. My wife and I have actually contemplated having our kids’ hearing checked because they’re so loud. Honestly though, I can’t make a commute without listening to podcasts or music. Sitting quietly in my car drives me nuts! And that’s not because there’s anything wrong with silence itself. No, it’s because we’ve never been trained to appreciate silence. For most people, it’s an acquired taste.
Appreciating silence is especially difficult when I’m by myself. And those moments are rare given my wiring and personality. Times of solitude are times when I most desire sound. If I make time in the day to go for a run or a walk alone, there’s no way I’m going without my phone. I have to have some sort of sound in my head.
Let’s look at someone who, having more leadership power than anyone who has ever lived, made silence and solitude a regular part of his life.
TIME IS NOT A GREAT EXCUSE
In Mark’s account of the life of Jesus, we find his perspective on the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. And in only a handful of verses, Mark shows us how crucial silence and solitude were in the life of Jesus. If God incarnate needed silence and solitude, I’d say you and I should pay attention to our own need for these things as well.
Starting in Mark 1:14, Jesus walks into Galilee and starts preaching. He goes throughout the town telling people about the good news He has brought with Him.
The Kingdom of God is at hand. — Mark 1:15 ESV
This is big news! Immediately, people start following Him around, trying to hear more. As He traverses the town, Jesus starts calling His disciples. Like Oprah handing out free cars, Jesus points to Simon Peter and says, “You get to follow Me!” Then to his brother Andrew, “And you get to follow Me!”
They immediately drop what they’re doing and follow Jesus. Why not, right? Next time we see them they’re at the synagogue. Think of this place as a mix between the town center and the church. It was the Sabbath, so everyone had gathered to hear the teaching. Now, you have to picture this. Those gathered have priests who teach them every week — the same way a church would have a regular pastor giving the message. But suddenly, this complete stranger gets up and starts right in on what He has to say.
Did the priests ask Jesus to teach? Did the people know He was coming? I have no idea. But I can’t help but picture Jesus bursting through the doors and walking straight to the front. I don’t know if that’s exactly how it happened, but regardless, Jesus teaches in a way the people have never heard before.
To me, this is the strangest part of the story. What did He teach? What did he say? I can’t imagine! But whatever He said was powerful, because the people were astonished. Then things get even crazier.
While Jesus is teaching, a man with an unclean spirit starts yelling at Him. Jesus gets heckled! Again, was this a regular church attendee? Or was this guy new too? We don’t know. All we know is that Jesus casts the unclean spirit out of this man. What?
I don’t know if you’ve ever seen comedians roast hecklers — it can be pretty funny — but that’s nothing compared to Jesus. This man is yelling at him, and Jesus says,
Be silent, and come out of him! — Mark 1:25 ESV
And — bam! The spirit leaves. This has already been a big day for Jesus. Even reading about it has me a little exhausted. But wait, there’s more!
Jesus leaves the synagogue and goes to the house of Simon’s mother-in-law, who happens to be very sick. Can you imagine Jesus coming to your house the one day you’re sick in bed? I’m picturing Simon’s mother-in-law sniffling with puffy eyes and Kleenex scattered all over the bed (I know Kleenex hadn’t been invented yet, but just follow along). This is the scene Jesus walks into. And what does He do? He heals her. Of course.
In an instant she goes from lying in bed to bustling around the house making dinner and serving them. News of this miracle spreads quickly, and people line up outside the house asking Jesus to heal them. Mark tells us that
the whole town gathered at the door. — Mark 1:33
And Jesus heals one after another after another. Now, I would think that after that type of day, Jesus would probably sleep in. Seems fair, right? Nope. We read,
And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He departed and went out to a desolate place, and there He prayed. — Mark 1:35 ESV
This story fascinates me. Not only does it paint this incredible picture of Jesus bursting onto the scene, but it also reveals His character in cool and subtle ways. Moreover, it shows us the value of silence and solitude.
If Jesus knew and acted on the importance of getting away, getting alone, and getting quiet, shouldn’t we?
“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.” Proverbs 25:1
It had been a while
since I had cut grass on that lot and little while since it had been cut by
another. That amount of time, coupled with the time of the year, helped me
forget about the hidden nuisance that occurs there. It is one of Florida’s
unwelcome features and comes in second, only to fire ants. This time of year
the seed heads of sand-spurs pop up, proudly stick out their prickly tongues
and seeming say… “Haaaaaa…Did ya miss me?!” I immediately stopped the mower,
went to get gloves and trash can, then got down on my knees to diligently
search!
Sand-spurs are good
hiders. In a green yard full of numerous types of grass, one would never spot
them. But when left to grow for too long, and especially in the fall, they seem
to pop up quickly. They have barbs like fishhooks that, when mature, easily
catch onto clothing to be transported to another area where they can grow and
reek havoc. From the center root they send out shoots that creep under and
through the other grasses, then pop up like a demon from hell. The only way I
have found to get rid of them is to get down into the grass, follow the shoots
and then pull up the heart of the root. Doing this GUARANTEES some pain! But if
left alone to mature and drop, bare feet have no chance against a sand-spur’s
sting.
Where do thorns,
pricks, mosquitoes and wasps come from? Were they part of the original Garden
of Eden or added later after Adam and Eve fell? It is difficult to know for
sure. Though, in my Bible reading, I have come to my own conclusion. But even
the right answer does nothing to alleviate the sand-spurs sting. Besides, there
are better questions that we can ask of God that can help us stand up to the
REAL pains of this life. But one must WANT to search to find the answers.
God hides! That is
TRUTH! Many verses allude to the fact that God never leaves or forsakes us, but
He DOES conceal and hide truths from us. Why? Well, if you know ANYTHING about
love, you know that its initial appeal causes pursuit. To grow deeply in love
requires getting down into the roots of our hearts to discover intimate things
that can be built upon. Problems between spouses can occur when either partner,
or both, don’t care to invest and go deeper into the relationship. Sadly, a
heart left alone will typically produce thorns instead of flowers.
The Bible tells us
that we will find God
when we seek Him with all our hearts (Jeremiah 29:13). It
is a call to intimacy and desire, where God hides, just waiting to be found. He
is NOT an easy lover and demands time and effort to see His glory. He created
women with this tendency… and it is NOT a bad thing. His purpose is to ask…
“how much do you REALLY want and desire me” It is a call to get on our knees
and diligently search!
I have had numerous
burrs under my saddle throughout my life. Questions for God that I wanted
answers to. Like, “What did Jesus mean when He said we would do GREATER things
than He?” And what’s all that business about ‘asking in faith… believing, and
you will get what you ask?’ I wrestled with that one for 21 years before I got
my answer. But it only came through time and pain as I continually sought it
out.
God’s Word is a
mysterious treasure trove of wisdom, help, strength and courage. It supplies
the seeker with everything they need in this life to get through struggles and
hardships… AND to grow closer to HIM. But to gain its prize, one needs to stop,
get down on knees and put time into searching for it. And yes, there will be
pain! Are you with me?
“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him…” Psalm 37:7
While there was
nothing particularly interesting about the room I was in, I sat in wonder
nonetheless. I wasn’t upset, just in wonder, as I sat waiting, in the ‘waiting
room, for my name to be called. The appointment had been made about 6 months
ago for a checkup. After several reminders by email, text and phone calls, I
was right on time… which was a little early. But the official time came and
went. 20 minutes later I was still waiting! I was not upset. Since waiting in
normal in a waiting room. But I couldn’t help was wonder… “how much longer.”
Waiting in the
Doctor’s office is different than waiting for the traffic light to change or
waiting in line at the store. BOTH of which I did this past weekend. When I was
at the store, I deliberately chose that line because I could visually SEE how
many items the person had in front of me. Only a few items unconsciously meant quicker
service. That is, until the lady had questions about payment, then searched her
purse for the exact change! I had an ‘I love Jesus,’ hat on and forced myself
to appear calm and cool. But my inner alarm was ticking closer to RINGGGGGG by
the second. Waiting and patience is NOT my best quality. Turning my thoughts TO
Jesus… I forced myself to ‘be still, then began to internally whine!
Years ago I got my
first sales job selling computers. I will never forget the first time I saw a
dot matrix printer. I stood amazed at the SPEED that it did its thing… at 80
characters per second! Today, that would be long enough for a coronary! My
reaction was the same when I witnessed the first FAX machine. It was a thermal
model and literally took five minutes to print out 1 page! Technology may be
escalating, but patience has not!
Some things are fun
to look forward to…like birthdays, weddings, Christmas and weekends. If I
have to wait for something good, it isn’t so bad. But if there is pain
involved, mental, physical or spiritual, waiting and squirming go hand in hand.
I have several folks in my church right now who are waiting for the inevitable
thing that will NOT be good. Like seeing a fist coming toward you, KNOWING
there is nothing that can be done to stop it, they wait in Hospice, the
operating room or for the next test result. While I am blessed to NOT be in
their shoes, the Bible clearly tells me that both God and I have a place in
their suffering. God promises that He WILL ALWAYS be with them though the valley!
He expects ME to be as well.
God is on the job!
He has rolled up His sleeves and is moving just as fast as He can. But He isn’t
much of an instant God as I’d like to have. In fact, He moves pretty slow! He
has hemmed Himself in with rules He has to follow Himself, so that it is
IMPOSSIBLE for Him to simply provide a quick fix for every one of my problems.
But I have to realize that MY problem… is ME! I read a quote this morning by
Ben Patterson who wrote, “What God does in us while we wait is as important as
what it is we are waiting for.” And I would add… even MORE important. Faith
demands waiting, trusting and believing. And waiting and seeing God’s view of
the big picture is FAR more spectacular than mine.
“And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:8
I am about to step
over a line here. But knowing what I know, it will be fine. Our church has a
shooting league. We like to go to the new shooting range in town and shoot
pistols at paper targets. Last night’s session was unusually difficult for my
wife. For some reason she was missing the target… even from 10 feet! At one
point, she turned to me and said, “you cleaned my gun and now I can’t hit
ANYTHING. What did YOU DO to it!” So I’m writing about her!
Our master trainer
Dan came over to her and watched for a few moments, then stepped forward and
started giving her some instruction. His first words to her were, “You’re
holding it wrong.” From there he went down a list of explanations as to WHY she
was missing her target, then added corrective measures to help her improve. At
one point, when she started to explain… Dan simply told her to “shut up!” And
she did!!!
Dan has NO idea
that THAT phrase is not allowed in our home. When our kids were growing up,
those 2 words coupled together GUARANTEED a stern visitation and correction
from Mom. The word “stupid” carried the same penalty. Katie finds those words
rude and even disallowed them in our house. But now… she was LISTENING to Dan!
Dan is my hero!
The verse today
tells us that God is able to bless ME in EVERYTHING I do. This is one of my
favorite verses in the Bible. But the implied promise comes with an unstated
codicil that, in my opinion, starts with the words… “Shut up!” The verse
jumps out at me most when I find myself missing too many targets in life. Being
a dumb follower, I have a tendency to yell heavenward … ”WHATAYADOIN!” Then,
when I remember this verse, the FIRST thing I hear from God is… you guessed it…
“Shut up!”
The key word in
this verse is the simple word “ABLE!” God doesn’t say He WILL bless me. The
unspoken implication is that he CAN… IF… and ONLY IF… I simply shut up, pay
attention and DO what HE says! The action of ‘shutting up’ is the first proof
of discipleship! A disciple of Jesus Christ ultimately WANTS to follow where He
leads. If discipleship isn’t the main goal, what USUALLY follows from the
reader is an argument.. “BUT!” At that point, God typically wanders off to
‘ABLE’ someone else!
By now you realize
that this story is NOT about my wife. It is about me. I have to admit that I am
a stubborn follower of Jesus, walking a few paces behind, holding my walking
stick wrong, wandering off to look at something I’m not supposed to, asking
questions that are off topic and generally acting like a child. God’s patience
with me goes FAR beyond mine. But when I get into the brambles and work up a
lather of sweat, at just the right time I will hear Him respond to my complaint
with those loving words… “shut up, K.C.!” THEN another verse pops into my head with
the instruction starting with the words… “Be still and know that I AM God!!”
In other words… “Shut up K.C. and stop being a stupid disciple!!!! And BANG!!!
Just like that… I get it!
“Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Ephesians 5:14 ESV
Coming home for
lunch yesterday, I entered the house to the sound of a screaming alarm! It
didn’t take me long to figure out what that sound was because I had been
alarmed by it all week. It was an alarm clock that refused to turn off! Having
tried everything I could think of, I did the next to the last thing that would
silence the ridiculous noise forever!
I have 2 clocks in
my living room. One is a decorative cuckoo clock and the other an alarm clock
that faces out from our TV area. It’s lighted face works well as I can
instantly know the time from anywhere in the room, night or day. Somehow, when
we moved some things around last week, that alarm clock had gotten turned ‘on.’
Everyday about 11am, it did what it was made to do… BEEP BEEP BEEP! Though I
had tried numerous times, I could not get it to shut off! It was a conundrum
that was driving me crazy! So I googled it!
Technology comes
with it’s pluses and minuses. I discovered that this clock was put out about
2006. History had shown that I wasn’t the ONLY one with this particular problem.
One guy got so frustrated, he had taken a sledge hammer to his! The internet of
2019 allowed me to find the owners manual online and learn that you had to hold
2 particular buttons down at the same time to disable the alarm feature! I’d
have NEVER figured that one out on my own! The verse today presents a similar
conundrum!
Anyone who has not
been ‘born again’ will add this verse to their ‘can’t understand it’ list. That
list then becomes the reason they don’t ever READ the Bible since, “I can’t understand
it anyway.” The merry-go-round continues through life until they either ‘wake
up’ and live or die from deliberate ignorance. The Lord of the Universe, Jesus
Christ, tells us that men exist in a deadly sleep. His offer and purpose is to
wake us up and shine on, in and through us! But ONLY if we WANT to wake up! Oh…
there is no snooze button!
Inside of every
person exists the knowledge that there is a God, that we are sinful failures
and that unless something is done, we WILL all perish in judgment. How can
sinful people enter God’s perfect presence? It is clear God WANTS us there WITH
Him. But WE have to CHOOSE to wake up! God’s alarm clock regularly goes off in
our hearts. We can’t unplug it or smash it. We can either wake up to it or try
to live WITH it’s piercing noise by artificial means.
That fact that
Jesus Christ WANTS to shine on me should be enough to motivate me. His light
will either highlight my deadly sin or highlight the Savior who rescues me from
it. His manual, The Bible, tells me all I need to know… if I will just wake
up and simply follow His instructions. He will not ‘SNOOZE’ or STOP until I
either respond… or die without a response! BEEP BEEP BEEP!
“Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from Him.” Psalm 62:5
I should have been
sleeping… but now I was wide awake. My body should have been at rest… but my
guts were a raging fire. I should have been smart… but the consequence that
crept into the room was now convulsing at my own stupidity. My mind joined my
soul, shaking their bowed head in shame and wonder. I had done it… AGAIN!???
Acid indigestion is
a common problem for me. That I inherited GERD from my dad is a great excuse…
but like, “the dog ate my homework,” not really a good one. Normal people don’t
normally go around hitting themselves with hammers. But that, in essence, is
what I do! I had eaten too much at dinner, then ice cream just before bed
seemed like a pretty good idea! Before I allowed logic and history to shake
hands, I had grabbed the container from the freezer and dug in! “Who needs a
bowl,” I thought! Now, It was 1am and my stomach was in flames!
I am my own science
experiment. I realize that at my age I should be, do and act a WHOLE lot
smarter than I am. Unfortunately, I often live life swinging somewhere between
the ages of 11 and 18! When the consequences hit, I slide backward to age 2. I
want what I want, when I want, how I want it… WITH extra scoops! Shame and
discomfort, 2 natural and good emotions meant to keep me from further harm, lay
like sleeping dogs in the corner thinking, “why bark, the idiot won’t pay
attention anyway!”
Please forgive my whining.
I know this story doesn’t apply to you. I’m the guy that people like you laugh
about when you get together. I’m ‘the perfect bad example.’ To be honest, I
even frustrate ME! Then I remember the words of Apostle Paul (I do not understand
what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.Romans
7:15). Then I think about David (the adulterous, murdering,
‘man after God’s own heart’). But them I actually begin feel BETTER about
myself! Which then makes me think, ‘at least I’m not THAT bad!’ Which naturally
leads to… “Oh boy, let’s do that again!” and, “Where’s the baking soda???”
Psalm 62 is one of
my favorites. It is all about resting in God in the face of bad choices. The
beauty of God’s strength and love leap from the page and into my heart, giving
me hope. Until the very last verse. “Also to you, Lord,
belongs gracious love, because you reward each person according to what he
does.” And I freak!
Almost EVERY Bible
translation I found says that God will reward each person according to his
work! Which kind of leaves me stuck in the desert of no man’s land. Then I got
a nudge from Him. “K.C., Reward, not punishment, comes from the work that HE, MY SON JESUS,
has done. THAT is how big and strong my love is! It is BIGGER than your age, deeds,
thoughts, heart and impulse control. Please try to remember… this is NOT about
YOU! It is about my son Jesus!” “uhhhhhhhh o.k.”was my only response.
What a joy to be reminded that God is bigger than EVERYTHING! Which reminds me of a song! God on the Mountain by Lynda Randle
FINALLY… after a lightning strike, our church is getting our LED sign fixed… early this morning. So, today’s Words of the Day are from Max Lucado…Take it Max!
In all things God works for the good of those who love Him. —
Romans 8:28
Haman had it out for the Israelites. We read about his story in the book of Esther. A few hundred years earlier, the Israelites had defeated Haman’s people, the Amalekites. Haman was an Amalekite carrying a huge grudge and vendetta on his shoulders. It just so happened that Haman was promoted to a very influential position by King Xerxes of Persia. With this access to power, Haman planned to completely exterminate the Jews on Adar 13, a date somewhere around the months of February and March on our calendar.
Yet, there was another storyline developing that would eventually collide with Haman’s story in a big way: King Xerxes selected a new queen, Queen Esther, who was Jewish.
What situation are you facing right now that stirs in you the same kind of fear the Jews had for Adar 13? Illness? Not enough money? Then take a tip from Esther. She used her influence as queen to talk to King Xerxes. She asked him to allow her people to defend themselves on Adar 13. He agreed. Because of this, when the day came, the Israelites were victorious and Haman was executed.
Early in his dealing with mankind, God promised to bless obedience:
If you pay attention to the commands of the Lord your God that I
give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top,
never at the bottom. — Deuteronomy 28:13 NIV
Esther did what was right. She took a step of faith, and God blessed her obedience. He will do the same for you. No matter what situation you find yourself in today, God will ultimately win.
Promises from God
This God — how perfect are His deeds! How dependable His words! He
is like a shield for all who seek His protection. The Lord alone is God; God
alone is our defense. He is the God who makes me strong, who makes my pathway
safe. — Psalm 18:30-32 GNT
We may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall. —
Proverbs 16:33 NLT (interesting verse…??)
The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But
thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. — 1
Corinthians 15:56-58
For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the
victory that has overcome the world — our faith. Who is he who overcomes the
world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? — 1 John 5:4-5
Praying God’s Promises
Almighty God, You have promised to honor obedience. Help me walk steadfastly in Your Word and in Your promise. Remind me of Your power. Give me the courage to take steps of faith, remembering that everything will end all right.
Thank You that even if my circumstances may cause me to fear, I have the final victory in Christ. I only have to do what is right and place my trust in You. You are my hope. You are my victory.
God, You will accomplish what you set out to accomplish. You are always working for the good of those who love You. I praise You for these promises. Amen.
I Will
I will do what is right and trust God for the outcome. I will not try to manipulate or control my situation. I will let God do His mighty work, and I will serve Him no matter what. He has said all will be right, and it will.
The Best Is Yet to Be
“The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,”
says the Lord of hosts. “And in this place I will give peace,” says the Lord of
hosts. — Haggai 2:9
