God Saves His People

God saves his people today just as he saved the Jews from destruction 2500 years ago.   This is recorded in the book of Esther (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purim). Jewish people still celebrate God’s providential actions. God’s name is never mentioned in that Old Testament book, but his control of people and events cannot be denied. The story is set in ancient Persia in about 480 B.C. during the reign of Xerxes. The king replaced his wife when she refused to parade her beauty in front of Xerxes’ gluttonous and drunken party guests. He chose a young Jewish woman named Esther after she won a nationwide beauty contest.  Through Esther, God saved his people who were living in the Persian Empire at the time.

God’s Behind-the-Scenes Providence

Soon after Esther was crowned queen, Esther’s uncle Mordecai publicly insulted Haman, Xerxes second in command. So, he tricked the king into making a decree that all the Jews in the kingdom were to be killed on a certain day. But genocide wasn’t enough for Haman. He also decided to build a gallows in his front yard so he could humiliate and murder Mordecai. 

But God was in control. He made it possible for Mordecai to overhear a conversation in which some members of king’s court were planning to kill Xerxes. He reported the plot to the palace officials. They promptly executed the would-be assassins. And the incident became part of the official court records.

Xerxes decided to read those records in an attempt to ease his insomnia. In God’s providence, he just happened to read how Mordecai’s intervention had saved his life. The next day, Xerxes commanded Haman to dress Mordecai in the king’s clothes and lead him through the streets on the king’s horse. He was to proclaim, “This is a man the king desires to honor.” You can imagine how Haman’s anger and hatred boiled after that. He was more determined than ever to get rid of Mordecai and all his people.

Esther was aware of the honor paid her uncle, and she knew that Haman had gotten Xerxes to decree the death of all the Jews. She planned to remedy both situations by schmoozing the king and baiting Haman into a trap. She invited her husband and Haman to dinner and served as the perfect hostess for two nights. Haman basked in the attention and felt sure it was a sign that things were finally going his way. 

God Saves His People

On the third night of dining with the queen, Xerxes asked Esther how he could honor her. She requested that he stop the planned slaughter of her and her people. And, she revealed that Haman was the one who had plotted their destruction. The king left the room in a rage at how Haman had used him. While he was gone, Haman groveled at Esther’s feet pleading for mercy. 

In the Book of Esther, we read an ironic story about a man who was hanged on the gallows he built to take vengeance on a Jew who refused to worship him.
Twist of fate

Xerxes saw Haman in the compromising position and assumed he was making advances on the queen. In an ironic twist of fate, the king sentenced Haman to be hanged on the gallows he had built to get rid or Mordecai. Xerxes allowed Esther and her uncle to warn all the Jews in the kingdom about the coming attack. As a result, the Israelites armed themselves and defeated the king’s men who attacked them. Then, in one final stroke of irony, Xerxes named Mordecai to replace Haman as his closest advisor.

I can see how God saved his people through the actions of a beautiful queen and a pagan king in this incident. Haman had planned to have all the Jewish people living in the Persian empire killed. But God worked through the actions of Esther, Mordecai, and King Xerxes to save his people. This is so important to the Jews today that they celebrate it in the annual Feast of Purim. Furthermore, the story illustrates the truth of Proverbs 21:1. “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will.” 

Salvation

Anyone who places their faith in Jesus for salvation becomes a child of God.  From that point on, God takes responsibility for our welfare.  He protects and provides for us just as he did for the Jews living in Persia.

Other Resources

You might want to watch a fun Animated presentation of the story of Esther

My book addresses the topic of this blog in two chapters: If Only I Hadn’t Been Abused and If Only the Pain Would go Away

You Don’t Have to Worry

Worry. We all do it. We all hate it. And, it seems impossible to stop. But you don’t have to worry.  God commands us not to worry or be anxious. For example, Jesus said, “Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on” (Matthew 6:25). This is a command of Scripture and must be obeyed. So, what has God given us to make it possible to stop worrying? How can we stop being anxious and rest in God instead?

This is a mother who might be tempted to worry about her sick chile.
You Don’t have to Worry

Knowing what God is Like Stops Worry

In order to stop worrying, we have to know God. We have to embrace his sovereignty, goodness, and love. God created and controls everything. He is in charge of both atoms and stars. God directs the farmer in the field and the general on the battlefront. God can do anything he wants to do, and nothing can stop him (Daniel 4:35). That kind of power would be scary if God were not holy as well. His goodness prevents him from doing or allowing anything that could harm his children. God loves us (1 John 4:8) so he will only expose us to those things that will turn out to be good for us (Hebrews 12:11). God’s power, goodness, and love should assure us that nothing can happen in our lives that is outside his control.

A Child of God Never Needs to Worry

Children of a strong, and loving father would have no cause for worry. The fact is that anyone who belongs to God has that kind of Father. According John 1:12, a person who believes in the name of Jesus becomes a child of God. And, our perfect, loving, and powerful Father has made himself responsible for our care. He met our greatest need when he sent Jesus to die for our sins. And if God gave his Son to die for us, it seems reasonable to assume that he will supply whatever else we need (Romans 8:32). Since God is our Father, we can be as calm as a weaned child with its mother (Psalm 131:2).

God Gives His Children Anti-Worry Remedies

But we do worry, fret, and become anxious about all sorts of things. God knows all about our weakness, though. He has provided some spiritual remedies to mend our hearts and remove worry by its roots.

The Remedy of Prayer

Philippians 4:7 says we can have peace that we can’t even begin to understand. Because we are God’s children in Christ, we can ask him for anything. He can supply us with a friend or a job, food or finances, healing or endurance. God will answer our prayers according to what he considers to be best for us.

Good fathers know what will meet the most important needs of their children.

A good father protects and provides for his children
A good father protects and provides for his children

And they are not afraid to say “no” to what would ultimately hurt them. Godly fathers take great joy in giving good gifts to their kids. God knows us intimately and tailors his training for each one of us. He uses infinite wisdom in what to give or withhold. And every one of  his decisions is based in his lavish love for us.

That’s why we don’t need to worry, even if God doesn’t answer right away or in the way we had in mind. That’s why we can obey Philippians 4:6. We can lift our needs to God in prayer and thank him for his wise and loving answers. If we understand what God is like and that he is our perfect father, anxiety will replace worry in time. Even if the situation remains the same, God will use delays or denials to build our faith.

The Remedy of Scripture

We must ask for God’s intervention in a worrisome situation to begin on our journey toward peace. Our request places our burden into his all-powerful hands. But we must also engage in a battle against Worry and its twin brother, Distrust. In Ephesians 6:12-18, Paul describes the Holy Spirit-empowered armor every child of God possesses. We have enough protective gear to cover our mind and heart. And we have a sword, which is the Word of God.

By using the truths and promises of the Bible, we can fight and win the battle against worry.

We worry because we believe we must take care of the problem. We assume that God either doesn’t care about our need, or he can’t come to our rescue. Both of those opinions are sinful lies. But, “if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from al unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). God will forgive us. And, did you notice that he will also purge our hearts and minds of the sins of worry and distrust.

The Remedy of Divine Power

The process of driving worry out of our hearts involves spiritual battles. But God has provided us with divine power with which to fight the lies we believe. With him, we can destroy the castle walls we run into when we try to solve our problems. God’s wisdom tears down our lofty opinion of our ability to solve the problems we face. God gives us all we need to reject the lies we believe. And, he enables us to trust him to provide for and protect us. He helps us retrain our mind so we stop trusting in our own puny resources and start trusting his power, holiness, and love. Check out 2 Corinthians 10:3-5if don’t believe me.

We Don’t Have to Worry!

We worry because we can’t solve problems. We don’t worry about knowing how to tie our shoes, but we do worry about having enough money to pay for a new pair. We don’t worry about the walls of our house crumbling in a summer rainstorm. But we do worry having enough money to pay the mortgage.

This is why God’s Word says, we should humble ourselves enough to ask for help instead of worrying. He would love for us to place all our fears and worries into his hands because he cares for us (1 Peter 5:6-7). God hears and answers our prayers for help in overcoming worry because it is basically sinful. Plus, the penalty for the sin of worry has been paid in full by Jesus’ death. In addition to telling us about God’s lavish love, the Bible also records the amazing promises he has made to us, his children. Because we are God’s children, we have his power, goodness, and love with which to fight and win the battle against worry, anxiety, and fear. God has done everything necessary to make it so we don’t have to worry.

Are you worried? As a Christ follower, you have everything you need to quit!

Nancy Leigh DeMoss has written a very helpful book on this topic:  Lies Women Believe: And the Truth that Sets them Free