All in God's Will
3am, 3:30, 3:45—what to do in the middle of the night? Oh how I do not like those wee small hours of no sleep. Up to the bathroom—no, I’ve done that already; toss and turn—maybe it’ll be better on my right side. Perhaps some hot tea. The clock ticks on before my very eyes.
Yes, Esther was lovely in form and features (2:7); but more importantly, she oozed grace. Names were significant in those days. The queen’s Jewish name, Hadassah, means myrtle: “a tree native to Babylonia, (which) the returning exiles took…with them to Canaan... (as) a symbol of the nation of Israel—transplanted from Babylon to the Promised Land.” Her Persian name, Esther, means star: “The myrtle tree bears a beautiful star-like flower…full of beauty and grace.”**
Fascinating, the book of Esther, for as many times as I have read it—fascinating in its place in history; fascinating in its complex simplicity; fascinating in the conundrum of God’s absence. Where to begin?
For some reason, I was allowed to choose the family Christmas tree when I was about eleven years old. We planned a Saturday in early December—packed a sack lunch, poured hot chocolate into the Thermos, bundled up, and piled into our late-model station wagon.
I enjoy hiking a new scenic trail in the mountains. There is a fun sense of adventure with the challenge of something new and the beautiful views that await me, including the unknowns ahead. There are often choices in the trail of two different ways to go. Will I pick the right one? Will it be marked well so I choose wisely?
I just love reading what Paul wrote in the New Testament of the Bible. I feel like I am reading his journal because he conveys such a frank and candid message about his life in view of God’s leading.
From the beginning, God has known me. He knew the parents I would be born to and the country, state, and town where I would be born. He knows everything about me!
Being short in stature, my twins outgrew my height by the age of 10! I used to tell them, I may be little, but I’m mean! It really didn’t scare them, but I tried to make up for what I lacked in height by an authoritative voice!
Remember when your mom said, If you ____ (fill in the blank), then I will____ (fill in the blank)? It depends on the if what the then would be. Then depends on what you did with the if. Joyful or painful! Blessing or curse.
In my plans for big events this year, my husband and I wanted a vacation for his 60th birthday.
But God made it clear that His will for my husband was that he was to have surgery to remove cancer from his body on his birthday.
Do you find yourself having self-control in some areas of your life, but others not so much? I know I do. Sometimes I feel like I am on a roller coaster. I go up and up feeling like I have made so much progress and then, bam, down I go at a much faster pace than I went up.
Normally optimistic, returning home, I fell into the blahs. I couldn’t even really put my finger on why I was blah. I bet you’ve had those seasons, perhaps during winter and longing for spring as I was!
As I began this year, I prayed to the Lord to show me a word that He wants me to focus on for this year. And He brought to mind the word… Surrender.
The night of Jesus’ betrayal had arrived. The moments with His disciples before His crucifixion were limited. Therefore, Jesus was purposeful in His actions.
Are you blooming? The day I took this photo, I was sitting outside on the deck having time in the Word and kept looking at this new spring flag on our deck. I loved the vivid colors, but more than that I want to do what this says.
If life is a race, how are you doing? If you are alive, you are still somewhere on the racetrack heading toward the finish line.
Have you ever noticed how God speaks in multiple ways when He is trying to get a point across to us? Often when I read scripture and God reveals a new truth, or reminds me of something He previously revealed and I have ignored, I begin to see the same truth in other ways.
As I sat at a crossroad, I was unsure of which direction to turn.
I have never had a good sense of direction.
If anyone gets lost… it’s me.
Can you relate?
Do you like to share your dessert?
It can be a nice way to have a tasty treat by sharing a small amount.
But what happens when the group partaking becomes selfish… and the spoon almost seems a weapon?
The book of Haggai winds down dramatically with promise after promise from God, first of supernatural intervention: “I will shake…I will overturn…(I will) shatter…I will overthrow” (2:21-22). But when, wonders Zerubbabel—when?
