Day 76- Standing Up For What You Believe
📖Daily Reading
Esther 1-5
🎥 Video
Join me on my morning walk as we rise and shine together by walking through the Bible daily and learn a practical applicable coaching nugget from the ultimate life coach - our creator (whatever that means to you). No judgement zone here, all are welcome, we are all on a spiritual journey because we are after all spiritual beings having a human experience.
📝 Reflection
Esther 3:2
All the king’s officials would bow down before Haman to show him respect whenever he passed by, for so the king had commanded. But Mordecai refused to bow down or show him respect.
The book of Esther is so rich and drama filled, it is kind of like a soap opera. The immediate theme that stood out to me was that all of the main characters really stood up for their beliefs. Not all good beliefs, or with good motives, but none the less they all had convictions. Queen Vashti, King Xerxes, Mordecai, Haman, & Esther. All had courage and conviction, but not all for the ‘right’ causes or motivation. So the lesson that we can hopefully take away is to have the courage to stand for what you believe when it is ‘right’ and for the common good, a higher purpose and for the ‘right’ reasons.
Let’s take a look at a few examples from the first half of the book. Queen Vashti was summoned to king during a feast on the seventh day after a lot of drinking, it says ‘on the seventh day when he was high in spirits because of the wine’. He wanted to show her off to his friends. Queen Vashti, said no thank you. She didn’t want to be used this way or subject herself to these drunk ogling men at this party. This modern day woman (me) was saying ‘YES! Go girl!” While I was reading it. She stood up for her beliefs. The king in response stood up for his. He had her exiled. He couldn’t have other wives in the kingdom being encouraged to disrespect their husbands. He had to send a clear message. Both stood up for what they believed even in the face of unwelcome consequences. She had to give up her position and home, he had to give up his wife whom he seemed to really like. Vashti, we can only imagine would rather give this up than be a ‘boy toy’ and be used. He was willing to lose his wife for what he believed was good for all the other men and marriages of the kingdom, he was willing to stand up and be a role model for the sake of his people.
The exit of Queen Vashti meant that the king was now on a search for a new queen to replace her. This is when we meet Mordecai and Esther whom we also learn are Jews. Mordecai is actually Esther’s older cousin, who took her in to raise her when her parents died. Esther is described as very beautiful and lovely. She is selected to be one of the candidates for being the new Queen. Mordecai advises her that they should keep their nationality and family background a secret. Esther is selected as Queen, it was love at first site for king Xerxes when he saw her. The process though was a long one, and during this time Mordecai kept in close contact with Esther and he also became a palace official. In his capacity as an official he was in a position to overhear an assassination plot against the king. He told Esther, who told the king and gave credit to Mordecai and the plot was stopped and the would be assassins were executed. Again another example of standing up for what you believe, neither Esther or Mordecai stood by, they stood up.
Next we learn that Haman, son of Hammedatha the Agagite who was known as ‘the enemy of the Jews’, was promoted to the highest position of all the nobles. In the scripture quoted above we learn that Mordecai stands up for what he believes in and will not bow to the enemy of his people. This angers Haman, he in turn stands up for what he believes in, which is himself. He is so angry about being disrespected in front of his peers by Mordecai, that he not only devises a plot against Mordecai but he hatches a plan to kill ALL of the jews, and he presents this plan to the King in such a way that the King agrees to it and authorizes it! Mordecai, is so distraught that he tears his clothes and put on burlap and ashes to mourn the terrible news. All of the Jews join him in this mourning by weeping and fasting. Esther hears about this and sends someone to Mordecai to find out what is going on.
Mordecai sends a message back to Queen Esther asking her to go to the king and beg for mercy for her people. She messages back saying, ‘I can’t just go to the king without being summoned, he might kill me’. He sends another message back saying basically ‘you need to do this, if you don’t do it, then help will be sent for somewhere for our people, but maybe this is why she has been gifted with her position, ‘for such a time as this’. She is in a position to save her people from this death sentence. Esther is encouraged to stand up for her people and sends a message back to Mordecai saying she will do it, and asks for him to have all of their people fast and pray for three days. She says “I will go see the king even though it is against the law, and if I must die, then I will die’. I would say this is a courageous example of standing up for what you believe.
Esther approaches the king, he grants her permission to be in his prescence and speak. She asks him if she can prepare a banquet for the King and Haman as special guest of honor. He not only says yes, but he says ‘whatever you ask is yours, I will give it to you even if it is half the kingdom!’ She says she will let him know at the banquet. The king lets Haman know. Haman is excited about this and as he leaves he sees Mordecai who will not stand up in his presence to pay him honor. This infuriates Haman and he devises a plan to kill Mordecai. He has 75 foot sharpened pole prepared to impale him. This is another example of Haman standing up for what he believe, but it is totally ego and self motivated.
In the meantime, we also learn that the king is having trouble sleeping one night so he summons his attendant to read him the book of history of his reign. He is reminded of Mordecai’s earlier intervention and help in the assassination plot against him. He then asks his attendants, ‘did we ever reward or recognize Mordecai for this?’. He learns that they didn’t, so he wants to rectify this. Haman also just happens to be nearby the kings room at this time, so the king requests him to come in and the proceeds to ask Haman, ‘what can I do to honor someone who truly pleases me?’. Haman is so full of himself that he assumes that the king is referring to him and he goes on to describe what he would like to happen for himself. He recommends that the king dress such a deserving person in royal robes and put them on a royal horse and have a parade through the city square proclaiming honor of the person.
The king says ‘Excellent!’, go do exactly what you just said for Mordecai. Haman was once again humiliated in front of Mordecai. This made him even more angry. The day of the banquet arrived and Queen Esther has her audience with the King and Haman. The king asks Esther ‘what is it that you desire, I will give it to you even if it is half the kingdom?’. Then she proceeds to reveal her nationality to tell the King in front of Haman about the decree that Haman had in place to order the execution of her people. Haman is so terrified and he falls down on the couch that Esther is sitting on to plead for his life. The kings sees this and is enraged that he would dare assault the queen. He orders Haman to be taken away and then he is killed on the very pole that he had made to kill Mordecai.
WHOAH! Quite a drama right? Full of strong characters willing to stand up for their beliefs. Some for the ‘wrong’ or only self serving beliefs and some for a higher purpose and common good. I keep humming the John Mellancamp song “You gotta stand for somethin’” - ‘you gotta stand for somethin’ or you’ll fall for anything🎶….’
✍🏼Daily Journal Prompt
We all stand for something, but why? What are your motives? Do you know why you stand for something or have you just fallen into it, by default through maybe your family, parents, church, etc..? Do you believe in something but not in yourself enough to think you can make a difference, do you sit and stay on the sidelines? What if you are where you are and have an opportunities you have ‘for such a time as this’?
📖Tomorrows Reading
Esther 6-10
Coaching Opportunity
Let's make 2023 the year of YOU by laying a solid foundational mind set! The world needs what only you have to offer! Give yourself the best gift ever, the best version of you is ready to rise & shine!
Book your free📞Wake Up Call today to learn if this is what you have been waiting for!
If you have stuck with me this far, then you are not reading this by accident, I believe God has a plan for you and is calling you forward!😉🤩
CONNECT WITH ME
Subscribe to Rise & Shine✨Together Daily Encouragement
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/felecia.b.holmes (personal)
Rise & Shine Together Private Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1093183278239989
You Tube: Rise & Shine Playlist
|