Devotionals Feb. 18th- 21st

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2009 -
ESTHER 2 19-23
Have you ever wondered where you are and why you are there. I have many times. Mordecai sat in the kings gate and heard a plot by two of the king's men to kill the king. Once again Mordecai and Esther were in the places that God desired them to be. They had made a commitment to God, and God had taken that commitment and used it to position them in the place to save the king and the kingdom.
Mordecai, after hearing the plot told Esther and Esther told the king and the plot was overthrown and the two traitors were hanged and Esther was endeared that much more in the heart of the king. God continues to work and position his people where He desires. If you are in the center of God's will you are where you are suppose to be, doing what He desires you to do. Don't question the shy's of God, simply do what God wants you to do, where He wants you to do it.
In this instance, Mordecai what where he was at the time he was to expose the wrong motives and actions of the traitors. God in his wisdom have his children to cry out against the sins of the people and to warn them of their destination, if they continue on the path of destruction.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009 -
ESTHER 3:7-13
Times have changed but people remain the same. Their lusts, their prejudice, their desires for wealth and power all remain consistent from generation to generation. In today's devotional Haman, an enemy of the Jews, goes to the king to obtain the permission and the funds to destroy, what Haman describes to the King, his greatest enemies. He received the Kings permission and the funds necessary and Haman set out to rid the empire of all of the enemies, the Jews, of the King.
God however had a huge surprise for Haman. Mordecai had advised Esther not to reveal her heritage, and unknown to Haman, and unknown to the King himself, Esther was a Jew. Once again, God had his servants in the exact place at the exact time. What a surprise Haman was about to receive. As the old time radio character, Chester Riley, use to say, "What a revoltin' development this is."

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2009 -
ESTHER 4:1-3, 9-17
I am 59 years old. And in all of my life I have never faced the things that we are facing today. We have had the tough times, I grew up very poor, was born during the Korean conflict, was a teenager during the Viet Nam war and served in the military during that time. I remember being spat upon because of the uniform that I proudly wore, and would still wear it proudly if any thing other than the hat fit. But in all honesty I fear more for our country today than I have at any other time. There are many reasons and I will not take the time to expound upon these points at this time.
During this time the Jews were greatly frightened. Why? Because of the order sent by the King and the works of Haman. What they did not know was the plan of God and the positioning of Gods people. Even in the worst of times, God is still on the throne. He is always a step ahead and always in control.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2009 -
ESTHER 7:1-10
Haman, bound and determined to slay all the Jews and Mordecai, built the gallows to hang Mordecai. Now, stop and think about this.
Haman needed permission to slay the Jews. Granted! Haman needed the funds to go throughout the kingdom to spread the word that the Jews were going to die. Granted! I think that he enjoyed watching the Jews weep and cry because of their doom. He has won. He has the power, the authority, the wealth, the permission, the backing of the king, to destroy this hated people. Nothing, but nothing stood in his way. Off to the banquet. The King is there. Haman is there. And of course the Queen is there. What a great time Haman is having. Tomorrow, Mordecai, the Jew, dies on the gallows that have been built just for that purpose.
The King turns to his Queen and asks her a simple question. "What is thy petition?"The Queen, now remember this is the Goens translation, says "King, do you love me?""yes" said the King. "But King, do you reeealllllyyyyy love me?" "YES" replied the King. "Then why are you going to allow someone to destroy me and my people?" "WHAT?" shouted the King. "Tell me who it is and I will destroy them!" Would you not have loved to have been in the room to see the look on Haman's face! It was not the beauty of the Queen that saved her people. It was the God of heaven that put her in the right position at the right time. You are here for a reason, right where you are. Do what God wants you to do and be thankful for the grace, mercy and direction of our Lord.

Devotions Feb. 16th and 17th

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2009 -
ESTHER 2:1-11
In chapter one, Queen Vashti refused the command of the King. A seven day celebration and strong drink had made the King make a very bad decision to have the Queen parade herself and her beauty in front of a large group of drunken men. When she refused the King became very angry and he, and a group of drunken wise advisors decided to dispose of the Queen and choose another young, fair, virgin to be queen.
In chapter two a beauty contest is arraigned and this is where the workings of God begin to develop in full view. It is always interesting to me to see how God works, and it makes me wonder about nearly every situation that I find myself.
We have a lady by the name of Esther, a Jew, who was an orphan. Her mother and father had died and she was raised, as his own daughter, by her cousin Mordecai. She was a woman of great beauty and charm. Mordecai was one of the Jews who was taken away in the captivity from Jereusalem. Now both Mordecai and Esther find themselves at Shushan the palace. Have you ever wondered why you are where you are at this particular time. I have. I have found myself at a place that many times I ask the Lord what he is doing in my life. And I presume you have as well. One thing that I am sure of, that God has a reason for my life, and he has a reason for your life as well.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2009 -
ESTHER 2:13-18
The other virgins required many ornaments and other things which they thought would appeal to the king, but Esther required nothing extra except what Hegai suggested. Perhaps her very simplicity made her beauty stand out more than all the others.
When she was taken to the king he indicated his love and favor toward her above all others, and set the royal crown upon her head. She was now the Queen, the lady that took the place of Queen Vashti.
How did Esther become Queen? By just being herself, being the woman that God had made, being the best that she could be, but still, just being herself. I know so many people that try to be someone other than who they are. They live in a land of make believe, always desiring to be someone they are not. An original is always more valuable than a copy. If you imitate someone, or try to be someone that you are not, the best that you can ever be is second best.
Esther became Queen, because that was the will of God for her life and being in the center of God's will is the greatest place to be, rather you are a Queen or a dishwasher, be what God wants you to be and be the best at it!

Devotionals Week of Feb 2-7th

Monday February 2, 2009 - 1 Kings 19:15-21
Have you ever felt all alone in this world? Have you ever felt as though no one understands you? Have you felt as though nobody else is standing for God, and you, and you alone, are the only one doing your best for the kingdom?
That is exactly the way that Elijah felt. Did he have good cause to feel that way? Maybe. But we must never live our lives from the position of being a victim, or with a poor little me attitude. If you are fighting the battle alone, you still have the Lord, and that makes you a majority in and of itself. It makes you a winner, it makes you a warrior, it makes you a conqueror, it makes you victorious! But you are not alone.
There are thousands fighting the battle, and winning the war. There are thousands that are suffering far greater persecution than you are but they are suffering victoriously. There are those that are far less fortunate that are not crying about the lot that has been given them, they are just doing what God wants them to do.
That is what today's scripture is all about. Elijah said God, I am the only one that loves you. God said no you aren't, let me introduce you to several thousand.

February 3, 2009 - 2 Kings 2:9-15
If you could have any thing in life, what would it be? Well, one of the things that we think of is money. If I could have all the money I needed all would be well. But think of all the people that have hundreds of millions of dollars that have miserable lives. Maybe beauty would be something that we would desire. A beautiful face and body would make my life complete. Well, as one that possess a beautiful face and body, I can tell you that will not turn the world around for you either. Friends, no that will not do it. Power and position in life, nope that still will not do it.
Elisha had the answer. He wanted to be a man of God. Elijah was a man of God and Elisha wanted a portion, no wait, a double portion of what Elijah had. More than anything else he wanted to be a man of God, a man that would be a blessing to others long after his days on this earth was finished.
With everything else, a man without the blessings of God has nothing. With nothing, but only the blessings of God, a man has all that he will ever need.

February 4, 2009 - 2 Kings 4:8-17
Notice verse 8. "And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread." A great woman? This was a lady who was financially well off and of significant social standing. She was a great woman in the eyes of the financial world and the social world as well, but is that what made her a great woman in the eyes of the Lord? She was a spiritual woman. She was able to perceive that Elisha was a holy man of God. She persuaded her husband to build a chamber, a place for this man of God to lodge while passing through the area.
Although she was a lady of society and a woman of wealth she needed and wanted something that society could not give her and that money could not buy. She was barren and her husband was old. She needed a touch from the man of God and a blessing that only God could give her. Because her focus was not on her position in life, nor the size of her bank account, but on the man of God and the blessings of the Father, she obtained the one thing that nothing else could give her, something that only could come from the hand of God.

February 5, 2009 - 2 Kings 4:27-37
What would it take to turn you against the Lord? As a representative of my Lord as an assistant pastor and as a pastor for 34 years, I have seen a lot of people quit on God. They all have their reasons, and I am sure that their reasons are real reasons to them. And yet, the same reason that those that quit use for quitting others use for drawing closer to God. This lady from yesterdays devotional has now lost the child that God had given her.
How could this happen? Why would God do this? Why would God allow this? I am sure that she did not understand, but her response was a Godly response. She clung to the man of God. "As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee." The God that blessed her, would not leave her at this moment in time. And the God that has bless you, will not leave you at your darkest hour either. He will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. The God of the mountain is also the God of the valley.
I have known many that have had their world crash and burn. Those that forsake God never seem to get out of the ashes, those that stay close to God, begin to build new mansions.

February 6, 2009 - 2 Kings 13:14-20
All good things must come to an end, and the life of Elisha has done just that. I think about this more than the average man, maybe I think about it more than I should. Of all of the thoughts that linger in my mind, this one seems to no longer linger, but it abides there. When I die, what will I leave behind?
I read the Word of God and I read of the great men, like Elisha, and I thing how they turned around nations, and history was molded by their faith in God. I truly don't pay much attention to those that claim to be great men of God today because I think most of them have been created by Madison Avenue advertising agencies. I am sure there are some great men of God, I know hundreds of them, and I believe you are truly going to be surprised on judgment day when we find out the men that are truly God's men, who God knows.
Am I going to be one of them? Probably not. Sometimes I don't think I have the power to heal chapped lips, let alone turn around a nation. But I do pray, that when I am in glory, that the ones that know me, will know that I loved them, and that I was real.

February 7, 2009 - Luke 4:23-30
What is true Biblical success? A giant super church? Television programs? Radio broadcasts? Hundreds of thousands at crusades? Millions of followers? Millions of dollars in the bank, enough to buy you several homes, and jet airplanes? If that is the case then every single man and woman listed in Hebrews 11 hall of fame for those displaying great faith, are all utter failures because none of them had any of these things. Neither did they display the attitudes and convictions of those that are considered great today.
What is true Biblical success? Those who live by faith, love the Lord with all their hearts, love others as much as they love themselves, and win people to Christ. That is true Biblical success. That is what God is looking for. Will He find it in me? or you?