For Such a Time?

“If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. What's more, who can say but that you have been elevated to the palace for just such a time as this?"

Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai:

"Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then, though it is against the law, I will go in to see the king. If I must die, I am willing to die." (Esther 4:14-16 NLT)

It always amazes me how God works all things together for HIS purpose.  I marvel at how HE positions us in places and with people.  We can try to figure it out and work towards an end that we conceive, but if we truly seek GOD'S heart and walk in His will the picture is much bigger and more colorful than we could imagine on our own.
I am always struck by the obedient and bold heart of Esther.  She knew that what GOD was doing went beyond what she was capable of in herself.  It would take her so far out of her comfort zone that it was nearly unfathomable.  She also knew that she needed to seek HIM who would guide and strengthen her and that in HIM all things were possible.
Esther was willing to die for whatever GOD wanted her to do.  We struggle with merely stretching outside the cozy box of our lives. I pray that I am willing to be positioned and that I would recognize it as HIS will and not my own.

"God, position me as YOU see fit.  Guide my feet, my words and my actions.  Take me beyond anything I can imagine. I want to be used in "such a time as this," with the boldness, determination and strength of Esther."

Are You God-Tight?

I recently had a conversation with my 'son' who is currently stationed in Kentucky, far from home and feeling very vulnerable to world around him.  Although he is neither mine biologically or legally speaking, he has been divinely planted into my life.

In our talk he compared his recent journey to that of a submarine with leaks. 

Our lives can be compared to that of a submarine, if we are not "God-tight" we will begin to take on the water we are surrounded by. It then becomes necessary to look for the 'leaks' and patch them.  This can only be done if we ask the Father to reveal where we are weak and what we need to do to fix the damage.  Sometimes that damage affects others and we need to help mend the 'holes' we have created in their subs.  As we take on the 'water' of the world around us we also have to be aware that we need to remove it from with in our lives.  There will be times when the task whether it be filling holes or baling water will be too big for us to do alone.  We will need the help of others that God places in our lives.  And then there will be times we surface and still other times when we simply rest in port. 

We all need to strive to keep our 'submarines' God-tight, a daily task.  If we are not diligent we will begin to be weighted down by the water we take on, making it harder and harder to surface.

"Don't copy the behaviors and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.  Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect His will really is." Romans 12:2

Love Is a Battlefield

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged.  It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.  Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.  1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NLT

"Love is a battlefield..."  Oh how does the phrase from a classic 80's ballad ring true.  We have such a worldly view of what love should be and when we enter onto to that battlefield, so often we are unaware of the damage that can be received. 
God set love apart. When Jesus was asked what the most important commandment was He told them....
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind.  And love your neighbor as yourself. 

These verses from 1Corinthians 13 are the essential characteristics of love.  I am especially drawn to the last verse...
Love never gives up...
Love never loses faith...
Love is always hopeful...
Love endures through every circumstance.
If you love it....fight for it.

Stand Firm

"So take a new grip with your tired hands and stand firm on shakey legs.  Mark out a straight path for your feet.  Then those who follow you, though they are weak and lame, will not stumble and fall but will become strong."  (Hebrews 12:12-13  NLT)

I have often drawn strength for myself from verse 12 in the passage above.  We are going to become battle weary, tired, in need of rest....
Yet we are encouraged to continue to fight.  And although I have read the second part of this scripture I had not really let it take root until recently.  We not only need to fight on, hold ground, take hold for our own survival, but there are others who depend on it.  I have been weary recently, in need of rest and ready to withdraw.  I have experienced the need for a new grip and the physical and spiritual results of having shaky legs, yet the battle still goes on and I am painfully aware that there are others whose lives may depend on whether I choose to fight or not.

We fight for Him not for ourselves.  We gain ground for His Kingdom, and follow His orders.  May we all continue to hold the ground we've claimed and regardless of our tired hands and shaky legs may we mark out a straight and narrow path, helping those who may be weak or lame so that they will grow strong.  

Jer 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

If only we could truly trust in such a way that we did not try to alter God's plan or force his timing or question what His path for our lives is.  How often do we look at the path God has shown us and decide that His route is not the right one.  So we spend extra time testing our own ideas and then slowly we find our way back to where we were and begin again to follow God's PERFECT plan.
Tonight I am going to watch a group of the youth I have worked with for many years graduate from highschool.  Some I have been a leader in their lives for over 13 years, others only 2 years.  I have watched all of them grow in the Lord and place their feet on His path.  Many of them have joined me as warriors, while some are still training to enter the battle. 
My prayer for them is that they are steadfast and weather the storms that will come.  That they will, as we all should, believe that God has a plan just for them, unique and perfect, and that it is GOOD.

Sanctuary

Psalm 61:3 “For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.
                 Proverbs 18:10 “The Name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous run into it, and are safe."

Do we seek the refuge that our Lord provides us?  The Psalms are full of reference to the refuge, shield, and the strong tower our God is, yet we tend to stay committed to self-protection and self-reliance.  There is a time for rest, for training, for refuge.  We MUST be aware of the need and availabilty of our STRONG TOWER. 
I used to think that seeking retreat was a sign of weakness, that I wasn't the warrior I thought I was or that God wanted.  That by retreating into Him and allowing Him to refresh me and protect me I had somehow failed Him.  I see now that in order to truly serve my Lord I must constantly be refreshed, and it is only through HIM that there is victory. For if I choose to stand alone, I will surely die.
So here's to a time of refreshing and continued training, a renewed strength in Jesus Christ.

What Armor?

Ephesians 6:10-11

A final word: Be strong with the Lord's mighty power.

Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil.

How often do we think about “gearing up”, making sure that we are ready for whatever lies ahead in our day.  I don’t think in our modern day lives we relate to what it means to “put on the FULL armor of God.”  Each piece carefully positioned, properly given the attention it requires.  Do we realize we have weaknesses in carelessness?  I rarely purpose to prepare for the battle, although I am ever ‘ready’ to engage.  Which means that although I am conscious of the assignment I have neglected my duties, leaving myself weak and vulnerable to the attacks of the enemy.

Be strong...Be prepared...Be ready...

To What Purpose?

What is the purpose of this....
I envision this a place for reflection and dialogue.  A place for a battle-weary warrior to rest her head.  To relay orders from the commander and to inspire those who share the fight.  To combat the enemy and hold the Kingdoms ground.
I invite you to stand shoulder to shoulder with me as we engage whatever lies on the frontline....

Do you recognize the battlefield you stand on?