Hello, Faithful Readers
My hope is that you are being blessed with joyful hearts, even in your toughest days, as you walk closely with Jesus everyday.
If you are living in a difficult situation, or suffering in some way, have faith in God through Jesus. Trust that as you grow in Him, He will be faithful to deliver you from your troubles in His perfect timing. Until we are delivered, we must be obedient and remain walking close to Him; even in our trials and fears. We must remember that God is always with us. He has promised to never leave us, ever. As we trust God in this way, our strength as a Christian will grow and His protection becomes very powerful in our lives.
Most Christians give up when things go wrong. They try to fix it themselves. They don't wait on the Lord or follow His counsel; if they even sought that counsel in the first place. Esther and Mordecai DIDN'T do any of those things. That is the point of the story. They didn't just give up or run around trying to fix it themselves. They took it straight to the Lord for His counsel. God gave Mordecai the plan in his heart, a heart that sought God. While they were waiting for God to save their lives he, Esther, and the whole nation of Israel bathed it in deep earnest prayer and fasting. Esther and Mordecai had a real walk with God. This wasn't just some emergency prayer. They were faithful and then when the emergency came they were able easily to go to God with their huge petition to be rescued. They continued walking by faith, planning to do the impossible, because they walked with God daily. They didn't give up or run around trying to fix it themselves. They took it straight to God, earnestly sought His counsel, cried out for His rescue, and stepped out in faith. They didn't know what God would do or how He would do it, but they knew that He was the only One to turn to.
God heard them. He knew their plight. He had prepared everything for this very day. And His glory was revealed; He rescued them. And at the last second! We want to see our rescues come immediately. But God has other things in mind. He wants to see our faith and obedience...until the very end. He pushes us and tests us to see what kind of faith we really have. Is it in our own wisdom or the wisdom of friends with a dab of God in it? Or is our faith the kind that seeks His will, His way, His timing, and submits to His plan?
The obedience of Queen Esther and her Uncle Mordecai and their dependence on God in the face of annihilation was pleasing to Him. God had complete control over everything: from who became Queen of Persia, to the fact that Esther was born at just the right time to become Queen, to Mordecai's obedience in seeking God’s will in a difficult situation. God noticed their obedience and dependence on Him to save them, so God chose to use them as instruments to reverse the edict against His people, and to destroy one of their greatest enemies, Haman. God’s justice is perfect and will always prevail even in the darkest of circumstances. His children must always remember to seek His will over anyone else’s ideas. If Esther and Mordecai had forgotten about God’s love for them and all the mighty ways that He had delivered His people in the past, they would have been consumed with fear and would have never asked God for help in their time of distress. Their faith was stronger than their fear.
Is God calling you to step out of your ordinary Christian life and trust Him and His will for you? If He is, or when He does, I pray you will be willing to take Jesus’ hand and let Him lead you and teach you how to live for Him, and truly serve Him in this world.
“My prayer is not that You take then out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; Your Word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify Myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. John 17:15-19
“Because he loves Me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges My name. He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.” Psalm 91:14-15
“To God’s elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by His blood.” 1Peter 1-2
Seek God in all you do, and He will hear from Heaven. He will speak to you His perfect will for you; and deliver you.
We are now starting the book of Job. We will read chapters 1-14 for two weeks.
Blessings,
Patricia
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