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Listen while you read: "Master The Tempest Is Raging"1 (Lyrics) |
I am not a brave person. I have a fear of heights, and though not completely claustrophobic, I avoid confined spaces. I'm not pathologically afraid of snakes and reptiles, but I would always give them a wide berth! I tend to be shy around strangers, but over the years, I have learned to put on a brave face and to be cheerful and communicative, but it takes me a while to really open up to a new acquaintance.
I'm not sure that I would have been as courageous as Queen Esther was when all the Jews in Persia were in danger of being wiped out.
Esther 4:13-14 – Then Mordecai told them to reply 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?" (ESV)
In appearing at the royal court without a summons, Esther risked her own life, even though she was queen, but she did it, accompanied by the prayers and fasting of friends and family. Her courage averted a genocide!
I think that it takes courage and wisdom to see the reasons why God has placed us where we are today, and to go with that. Although safe for the moment in Canada, in general, these are dark times, and God is using His people to be lamps to remove the gloom. Perhaps, we may wish that we were somewhere else or in another time, but He calls us to serve where we are. God places an inborn sense of what's right in each heart. Do we ignore it out of self-interest, or do we go out in courage and faith to honour the Lord in all of our actions?
Being brave means acting even though we have limitations. He hasn't given us a spirit of fear. In our weakness He has made us strong, and He will never take us where He hasn't planned the situation in advance.
Isaiah 46:4 – Even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save. (ESV)
How willing are we to go out and be a blessing, to smile at, greet, or offer a helping hand to someone else, to speak openly about our faith, or to be the lamp in the darkness, and not be afraid?
Prayer: Dearest Lord, when darkness hides Your lovely face, may we rest on Your unchanging grace. In every high and stormy gale, may our anchor hold within the veil. On Christ, the solid Rock, we stand. All other ground is sinking sand. Give us the courage, O Lord, to keep our eyes fixed on You in dark times, and to be ready to be a blessing to many others. Amen.
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Yes.
Amen Shirley!
Thanks, Shirley. We all have fears to confront!
Amen and Amen.
(Texas)
A beautiful prayer and reminder. Thanks, and blessings, Shirley!
Thanks, Shirley for this lovely meditation on God’s purpose for us, his people.
Thanks, Shirley, for such practical advice in your devotional today. We all need reminders.
Absolutely Amen, Shirley. Thanks for sharing where we can find courage in trying times. Blessings.
Dear Shirley:
Keep up the great work you are doing! I know the Lord must be very proud of you.
Thank you very much for your timely devotional. We may never fully understand why God has placed us in a certain position, but we can be assured there is a reason.
“For such a time as this”, if only we can do as Queen Esther did and answer the call!
Don’t need to dress up, put on perfume; just “do the next thing”, listen, watch, smile, (even under a mask) and BE!
Thanks for this reminder, Shirley, right on as usual!
Blessings on your day,
(BC)
Will your anchor hold? A neighbour who helped my Dad — we called him our non-brother brother or a brother with different parents — would sing so loud we heard every word over the noisy tractor ‘will your tractor hold’ and any word he could put in. He had great faith. He died fairly young. When in the hospital I had given him an angel pin which he wore on his night gown. The nurses went to his room for his little sermons. Great person.
Thanks for sharing this devotional today! Years ago, our kids’ choirs shared the musical “Esther-Ordinary Faith”! Your devotional sure brought back so many memories! Oh to have the courage and wisdom “for such a time as this” too!
I especially appreciated your prayer and these words:
“I think that it takes courage and wisdom to see the reasons why God has placed us where we are today, and to go with that.”
Thanks!
Good morning Shirley,
Your first paragraph sounds like you are describing me to a tee. Funny how that is sometimes. Your encouraging email is a great help in this time so we do not forget our part in God’s plan of spreading the Word, helping where we can even if it is only offering a smile or a hello to let others know they are not alone and that God is walking with them and he does have a plan.
I think that in the darker times of our lives, more believers turn to God and our faith grows as we draw closer to him and build a relationship with him. Thank you for always sharing from your heart.
Shirley,
A few years ago, I attended a conference where we learned that each person has their own gifts and essentially, need to be valued for who they are. Apparently, most ministers are introverts and “extrovert to need.”
Introverts, which I think you must be, may be shy with strangers and uncomfortable in social situations where there are people they do not know.
I am an extrovert and love meeting new people, really good at networking etc. I am in the minority!
Each of us has our own challenges. But the important thing is being who we are, the person He created, as we strive to serve Him.
Thanks so much for sharing.