Scripture

Esther put on her royal robes and entered the inner court of the palace… The king was sitting on his royal throne…When he saw Queen Esther standing there in the inner court, he welcomed her and held out the gold scepter to her.

~Esther 5:1-2, NLT

Quote

God has determined to accomplish His purposes on this earth in union with the prayers of His people.

~Nancy Leigh Demoss {A Place of Quiet Rest, p.245}

If you have read the books I have recommended over the past couple of years, you know there is an insidious plot to annihilate the church. It is very disturbing but actually nothing new. I guess I am a modern-day Mordecai because the latest plot has caused me great concern. We are living in dark days and faith is required. Evil never relents of its own accord and we have been hit by a tsunami of evil. The very foundation of our culture and our way of life is being shaken. We are dealing with our own version of a HATEFUL HAMAN. Just as Haman was intent on destroying the Jews, the cultural Marxist we face are intent on destroying the church the family. The thing that distresses some of us is that it appears that evil is winning, that the enemy has God is a checkmate position, but this is only our perception, it is not reality. TV news may determine our perception, but the Bible defines reality. The Church will not be annihilated.

Yet there is another insight from this story. The Jews are saved by Esther’s intercession. Yes, I understand, it was God who saved them but He did it through Esther’s request to the king. As I read Nancy Leigh’s commentary on this story, I kept saying wow! Esther entered the kings presence in fear and trembling. Had he not been in a merciful mood, she could have been executed, but this pagan king held out his golden scepter. Do we reverence God the way Esther did the king? We have here, in the story of Esther, a glimpse of our relationship with God. There are some amazing parallels. King Artaxerxes, we will call him Art for short, loved Queen Esther. He was willing and able to give her more than she asks for, up to half of his kingdom. Obviously, our heavenly Father loves us infinitely more than any earthly king and His capacity to give is infinitely greater than any earthly king. May we reverently and boldly approach His throne of grace to get the help we need.

I came across a John Newton quote this week that fits our subject: “Thou art coming to a King, large petitions with thee bring, for His grace and power are such none can ever ask too much.” Keep praying for revival in America.

Extra

Ty asked me last night if I ever went back to bed after breakfast. I told him it depended on how well I sleep or what time I awake. The headaches wake me up early on some mornings. I love this weather and I have a project I need to complete before the next cold spell. On a special diet this week. Getting ready for the Roto-Rooter Friday.

Keep praying for our Cancer Warriors and pray for our State legislators. Alabama may have the best Pro-Life legislation in the country, and they are tampering with it; trying to water it down. We assume legislators will do the right thing and follow convictions but that is not how it works in Montgomery or Washington D.C. Legislators deal with lobbyist every day, and they give in to the pressure and the money. Pray for our legislators to be strong and do what I hate doing, contact them, and lobby for the church and the family.

Have a great day and thanks for reading the blog.