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Today, true believers are hated, despised, and rejected.

Then Esther spoke again to the king. She fell at his feet and wept and pleaded with him to avert the evil plan of Haman the Agagite and the plot that he had devised against the Jews. When the king held out the golden scepter to Esther, Esther rose and stood before the king. And she said, "If it please the king, and if I have found favor in his sight, and if the thing seems right before the king, and I am pleasing in his eyes, let an order be written to revoke the letters devised by Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king. Esther 8:3-5 (ESV)   Faithfulness in duty brings extreme danger in life. Those faithful to the true King gain enemies they have not asked for nor deserve. Like sheep, they have multiple predators, and the safety and rest they long for are only available at the word and in the presence of the King.   Today, true believers are hated, despised, and rejected because we have identified w...
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Obedience

On that day King Ahasuerus gave to Queen Esther the house of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came before the king, for Esther had told what he was to her. And the king took off his signet ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman. Esther 8:1-2 (ESV)   Doing what is right eventually pays great dividends, while doing what is wrong eventually extracts a great price. One will never be sorry he/she did what was right.   One cannot help but wonder what would have happened if Mordecai had compromised and made a quick appeasing bow to Haman. Our current actions create our future reality. If we want a victorious end, we must live like winners today. Mordecai was in the habit of doing right, and this habit yielded a tremendous benefit, as it always does. If we could see how the importance of simple obedience to God plays out in our future, we would be laser-focused on obeying Him.   Obedience to one who ...
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We often get "hung" by our schemes

Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the king, said, "Moreover, the gallows that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, whose word saved the king, is standing at Haman's house, fifty cubits high." And the king said, "Hang him on that." So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the wrath of the king abated. Esther 7:9-10 (ESV)   We often get "hung" by our schemes. It's embarrassing to get trapped by your trap. Prideful living, using, and manipulating people will always end in ruin.   "An indestructible connection exists between the violation of Divine law and consequent suffering. A disregard to the conditions of health entails sickness. Poison destroys human life. He who thrusts his hand into the flame invites suffering. A like measure of changelessness marks the operations of moral law. Transgression is followed by suffering." (Biblical Illustrator)   Those who follow God will suffer in the moment...
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Humbled

So Haman came in, and the king said to him, "What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?" And Haman said to himself, "Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?" And Haman said to the king, "For the man whom the king delights to honor, let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse that the king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown is set. And let the robes and the horse be handed over to one of the king's most noble officials. Let them dress the man whom the king delights to honor, and let them lead him on the horse through the square of the city, proclaiming before him: 'Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.'" Then the king said to Haman, "Hurry; take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king's gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned." Esther 6:6-10 (ESV)   Those who fight humility with ...
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There Will Be A Future

On that night the king could not sleep. And he gave orders to bring the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the king. And it was found written how Mordecai had told about Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king's eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, and who had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. And the king said, "What honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?" The king's young men who attended him said, "Nothing has been done for him." Esther 6:1-3 (ESV)   What are the chances of the king revisiting Mordecai's kindness to himself and thinking about rewarding him for such? I doubt that Mordecai prayed for the king to remember and reward his behavior.   Today's obedience sets up tomorrow's opportunities. We do what is right because it is right, not because we gain from it. The gain will come as God intervenes. We make nothing good happen.   For many, the moment we are in eclipses the fact that the...
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The Godless

And Haman went out that day joyful and glad of heart. But when Haman saw Mordecai in the king's gate, that he neither rose nor trembled before him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai. Nevertheless, Haman restrained himself and went home, and he sent and brought his friends and his wife Zeresh. And Haman recounted to them the splendor of his riches, the number of his sons, all the promotions with which the king had honored him, and how he had advanced him above the officials and the servants of the king. Then Haman said, "Even Queen Esther let no one but me come with the king to the feast she prepared. And tomorrow also I am invited by her together with the king. Yet all this is worth nothing to me, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate." Esther 5:9-13 (ESV)   Haman could not enjoy what he had because he continually focused on what he did not have. This focal point will eventually be his undoing.   The Godless have no place to focus other ...
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Today is no different.

On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king's palace, in front of the king's quarters, while the king was sitting on his royal throne inside the throne room opposite the entrance to the palace. And when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she won favor in his sight, and he held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter. And the king said to her, "What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given you, even to the half of my kingdom." Esther 5:1-3 (ESV)   Esther approached the one who could help and was ready to ask for his help. She had proven her faithfulness to him, was in good standing, and was willing to be a part of a solution.   Today is no different. Esther's relationship with the king allows her to be with the king. With whom is it that you have influence, and what should be done to unleash God's power through y...
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