JUNE 23, 2016

“If you can keep your head when all about you 
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too..."
― RUDYARD KIPLING

ESTHER 7-10

Xerxes gives Esther whatever she asks for and as a result Haman is destroyed and the Jews are saved, and Mordecai is given great power...

1King Xerxes imposed tribute throughout the empire, to its distant shores. 2And all his acts of power and might, together with a full account of the greatness of Mordecai, whom the king had promoted, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Media and Persia? 3Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Xerxes, preeminent among the Jews, and held in high esteem by his many fellow Jews, because he worked for the good of his people and spoke up for the welfare of all the Jews.

ACTS 6

Stephen becomes a threat and the leaders conspire to have him killed...

8Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. 9Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. 10But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke.

11Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.”

12So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. 13They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. 14For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”

15All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

JOURNAL 

Following God does not guarantee a life of sunshine and rainbows. Although things worked out quite well for Esther and Mordecai...here we see Stephen full of the power of God being betrayed and lied about.  God doesn't guarantee that our lives will turn out "successful". Even if we follow him and give our lives in service. God never promises that we will have good health or wealth or friends or a loving family. 

So why follow God?  Why give our lives in service if we are not guaranteed good fortune? Because we are part of a spiritual Kingdom. That kingdom gives us peace in the midst of misfortune, it gives us power to persist through trials, it gives us love to give to even our enemies. It gives us a purpose for living regardless of our circumstances. It gives us forgiveness when the worst of ourselves comes bubbling to the surface. But most importantly it gives us an intimate relationship with the creator of all of life and  allows us to be a part of God's plan and redemption. This is worth all the trials and the struggles...this is a joy that cannot be replaced by the greatest wealth or luxuries. 

7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ~ 2 TIMOTHY 4:7