Esther 3

“We are never prepared for what we expect.” – James Michener. I truly enjoy a good oxymoron. They are amusing, but often profoundly true.

We are going along in life, and with all our heart being faithful and obedient to God. Then wham! We are blindsided by the unexpected. Bewildered. Shaken. Confused. Offended! These feelings are especially exacerbated when we are being unjustly attacked by another human being, someone who may be manipulating a situation for their own good at our expense. What we may not realize at the time is that being faithful and obedient to God does not free us from being directly affected by the attacks of others, and that the injustice just may be taken by God and used for His glory. Can we grasp that and allow Him to work? Tough when one is in the middle of the muck.

Because of Mordecai’s obedience to God in refusing to bow down to Haman, Mordecai’s very own people, the Jews, were to be destroyed (through Haman’s manipulation) by the order of the king. Do you ever wonder how evil people not only find favor with those in power, but are also granted power, which they proceed to abuse? Bewildering.

So, here is the choice . . . . again! Our emotions can lead us down a path of destruction in our attempts to right the wrong on our own. I think of David crying out to God for deliverance from his enemies. And God, indeed, was his deliverer. In the midst of injustice inflicted upon us, in the midst of our being faithful to God, will we be steadfast? Will we hold on to the truth that God is our deliverer? I hope that for all of us, the answer is “yes”. “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Psalm 30:5b

Your fellow traveler,

Fran