Just some early morning thoughts from me to you…
“Mordecai also gave him a copy of the written decree issued in Susa for [the Jews’] destruction, that he might show it to Esther…and command her to go to the king to beg his favor and plead with him on behalf of her people…Then Esther [said]…’that if any man or woman goes to the king…without being called, there is but one law—to be put to death…But as for me, I have not been called to come in to the king these thirty days.’
And they told Mordecai what Esther had said. Then Mordecai [said] to Esther, ‘Do not think to yourself that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?’” Esther 4: 8, 10-14 (ESV)
One day more in this New Year.
One day more in our journey together.
Try this question on for today and all the other days we may have on earth—
What will we do with today? And with tomorrow?
How about these questions—What is God calling us to do? What is required of us? What and whom should we stand for?
During our few minutes together today, let me start with one premise and truth for us to embrace. Regardless of our respective ages—there is no such thing as retirement in the Kingdom of God.
Now, with that in mind, let me ask again—What is God calling us to do today, tomorrow, for the rest of our lives? What is required of us? What and whom will we stand up for?
Queen Esther faced those questions at one point in her life as we see in the scripture passage above. Queen Esther found herself in a place where she could stay quiet, and maybe save her own life—while the Jews (her people) were all killed; or she could risk losing her life, by standing up, and speaking to the King to try to save her people.
She finally realized, after listening to the Mordecai, that she was put in that place at the point in her life, for just such a time as that. And she stepped up, stood up, and spoke up—and later in the story we see that her people were saved.
Our lives can be viewed just like the story of Esther. Wherever we are, whenever we are there, we are always there for a purpose and in God’s perfect timing. It may not be as dramatic or the magnitude of the situation which faced Esther. But God knew what the world would be like for us when He created us, and what He would require of us, and expect us to do to make a difference, whenever and wherever we found ourselves.
I had the opportunity to visit the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC, a few years ago when in our nation’s capital. The moment you enter the building, you are swept back to a horrifying time in world history. Not only does the museum tell the story of the Holocaust, but it challenges people in all walks of life to recommit to the core value of standing for what is right, of fighting against hatred, and promoting human dignity.
As you leave the main exhibit in the Holocaust Museum you read the words by Pastor Martin Niemoeller—
“In Germany, the Nazis came for the Communists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time there was no one left to speak.”
Those questions will always remain before us—
What is God calling us to do? What does God require of us?
Who will we stand up for? Speak up for? When it’s easy, or when it’s not and everything is at stake?
On this day, for this time, during your life and mine—what will our answer be?
In His Name—Scott
