The Courage of Esther

 Our family has been hearing from the Father that we should reach out more. 

    -that we need to be His hands and feet

    -that God can use us even as the unique and peculiar people we are. 

We are still determining exactly what that means, and how to do it. 

It is so quiet and comfortable here on the mountain. My husband has lived here his whole life. As a young child, he spent hours playing alone in the yard. When he was a teenager he would often escape into the woods for days. He would take a few packages of Ramen Noodles and a fishing pole and hop on his dirt bike. I have lived here for 22 years now, and I understand why it is so hard for him to leave this hill. Our girls are young adults and love this mountain as much as their Dad. Our 11-year-old son is the only extrovert in the family, but, even he prefers to stay home.

 

The trees never complain about our singing and never interrupt us when we share our thoughts out loud. The deer are also very easy to communicate with. The creek doesn't pout and say we don't visit often enough. The rain comes and goes as it pleases and never needs to be entertained. 

But, people are intimidating sometimes. Maybe it is because we know ourselves. We know we have prejudices and flaws. We know we get annoyed easily. And, if WE have those unhospitable feelings, OTHERS probably do too! Maybe THEY would prefer to be left alone as well.

My oldest daughter took the assignment seriously this Purim.

Most of our friends and relatives don't celebrate this little-known (at least in our circle) holiday. But, we were reminded that it is okay to embrace our uniqueness. 

It ended up being a good start to this assignment. 

We made up several little packages to distribute. Our list of friends and neighbors who might appreciate them somehow grew to about a dozen. Nothing fancy. Just a little box, or bag with a few yummy treats and a homemade card painted by our thoughtful Rebecca.

The delivery time came. Jojo didn't want to dress up and was kind of pouty at first. But, as we stopped and saw the smiling faces, we all felt better. This wasn't so bad! 

Sure, the responses were inquisitive.

"Oh, is it a holiday?"

"This is nice! What is it for?"

"Purim?! What's Purim?!"

And, a couple...

"Oh, is it Purim today?!"

But, this is where Jojo got to do what he loves to do... share knowledge. My kids are way better at communicating than I am. Somehow they all got their Dad's short and to-the-point way of answering questions (which is super helpful in situations like these). 

"Purim is about the story of Esther!" Jojo answered. "It teaches us to have the courage to do the right thing when God puts you in the right place. It is about helping people."

"Wow! That is exactly right!" I said as I pushed all the words swarming inside my head back down. The words about Mordecai raising his cousin and why she was an orphan and who Haman's ancestors were and how many times, throughout history, the enemy has tried to annihilate God's people. And, how God's name isn't even in the book of Esther, but HE is there...

 He is working and moving, even when we cannot see Him! Even when we feel like we are all alone among foreigners who couldn't possibly understand all of our weirdness. And to realize that we don't need to be ashamed to be who God created us to be, even with all of our little quirks. Because maybe, he made us who we are and put us among the people we are among, because He wants to use us, right where we are.

Can God use us introverts, living so far away from the city? 

My first thought when we were discussing how we could serve God was to pack sandwiches and go to a nearby town and pass them out to the homeless. But, then I began to wonder if that was what HE wanted us to do. 

He didn't place us in town. He placed us here in the woods.

Maybe He has a use for us country folk too. There are people in the woods who need Jesus. There are many introverts, like us, who will never drive to the city and go to a big church full of people. I don't know what it would look like for us to reach out to them. But, maybe we will learn, in time.

Maybe serving our Father doesn't always look the way we think it will.

For Esther, it took becoming the queen of an ungodly country, married to a short-fused, partying king.

But, in time, and with support from her friends and family, she humbled herself before God and let Him use her, knowing she might not survive the experience. But, she did survive! And, in the process, so did God's people! 

Somehow the idea of letting God use us, whatever that may mean, doesn't sound so scary. Sure, it feels like we are putting our lives in jeopardy when we knock on our neighbor's door, but most of them will recognize us and not shoot! And, if sweet, beautiful Esther had the courage to risk her life to face Haman, surely we can have the courage to say yes to Him as well.

May God bless you and your family as you shine for Him where you are planted!

Please comment with Purim traditions that your family has.

How we Observe Purim at our House

 Purim is a sweet little holiday that looks back to yet another time in history when a villain attempted to annihilate the Jewish people. God sent someone to deliver His people in an unexpected way. The origins of this holiday are, as you probably know, described in the biblical book of Esther.

This is the Holiday that we celebrate the least often.

The first time we celebrated Purim was with our homeschool group. We bought this wonderful book titled:

A Family Guide to the Biblical Holidays by Robin Sampson & Linda Pierce

It is a nice thick book filled with activities, fun ideas, and extended learning references. Homeschool Moms love thick books full of great learning ideas!

My girls were little at that time and loved to dress up as princesses and bake cookies. We watched VeggieTales: Esther; dressed in ruffles and lace and ate sugar and spice and everything nice!

One of our friends showed up with a color-themed basket. Her kids were dressed up as characters from the Esther story. The girls loved the basket. They found fresh fruit, home-baked goodies, and a lovely card signed by each of their little friends. It was so sweet. The opposite of Halloween.

Somehow I didn't realize this was part of the celebration, giving gifts. Even though it literally says, in the Bible, that they sent gifts and food to each other to celebrate still being alive! I just thought my friend was really smart.

Now that none of my kids are little, we don't dress up. We fix up goody bags for a few of our friends and deliver them on Purim. It is best if they aren't home. We try to not let our right hand see what our left hand is doing!

Some years we Moms have fasted. It is a fast in remembrance of the fast Esther and her people did before she went before the king. 

We read the book of Esther around Purim time. It seems like we learn something new each year. But we don't have a fancy party like some people do. I guess I'm just not big on parties.

I hope you enjoyed this view inside our home! Stay tuned for posts about how we observe other feast days!

If you decide to celebrate Purim this year, or ever, may you never lose sight of Jesus in the middle of it all!

May God bless you and your family!

Please comment on what your family does to celebrate Purim!

Biblical New Year and Our Amazing Moon

 One thing I didn't fully realize before I started learning about the Feast Days was that God's calendar is quite different from the Roman calendar that we currently use.

It says in Genesis that God created the sun, moon, and stars for "...signs and seasons and days and years... (Gen. 1:14)" While we know that God definitely does NOT want us to worship them, or use them to foretell the future, they were created for our use.

When I was in college I took an astronomy class. Most of it was way over my head, but I remember being impressed with the moon. As I studied the Feast Days I learned even more about this "lesser light." Everything in creation points to our Creator and teaches us about Him. The moon teaches us to watch and wait.

The moon changes shape a little every night.

The amount of days from one visible new moon to the next is not exact! It may take 28-30 days!

The time the moon rises and sets changes every night.

Photo by Vladyslav Dushenkovsky on Pexels.com

To be clear I am talking about how we see the moon, from the earth, with our naked eye. So, for example, in Bible times, and even now. We don't go by the "astronomical new moon" which is when there is no moon at all, but by what we call the "first visible moon". We can get a pretty good idea of when it will occur, by looking up astronomical charts but we won't really know for sure it is a new moon until we see it!

Do you know how the ancient Israelites determined the beginning of the month? I'll tell you in this article!

I got so excited when I learned this because it is like God is having us practice something in the physical realm that we also need to do in the spiritual!

Every month, the moon grows and shrinks (again, from OUR perspective, not actually!). It is called "waxing" when it grows and "waning" when it shrinks. It appears to grow a little more every day until it becomes a full circle of light. Then it wanes every day until it is a circle of darkness that we cannot see. Then, when we see the new little sliver of light, it is the beginning of a new month on God's calendar!

But, here is the thing, we cannot exactly predict when we will be able to see that little sliver of the waxing moon! Many things determine if we can see it. For example, say the "astronomical new moon" (when it is a black circle) is scheduled for January 21 at 9:00 am.

If the moon rises at 7 am that day and sets at 6:30 pm. AND, If the SUN sets at 4:30 PM. Then, it may be dark enough and the moon may have "waxed" enough that we might see a small sliver of light making January the 22nd the first day of the month on God's calendar (I'll explain the month names in another post.).

However, as I said, the time the moon rises and sets varies, as does the sun!

(I don't know why I get so excited about this, yet it is so hard to explain!)

So, stay with me here.

What if the variables are different?

What if the astronomical new moon occurs at 4 pm on January 21, then the sun sets at 4:30 pm, and the moon sets at 6:00 pm? Even though the moon is up for a couple more hours after the sun set, it isn't illuminated enough for us to see it, so we wait. On January 22 we look up moonset and sunset times and find out that the moon is going to set at 5:30 PM. It is so close to the sun all day that there is no way we can see it, so we have no choice but to wait ANOTHER day! But, we don't give up, because we KNOW that that moon of ours IS going to shine again and soon. On January 23, we look at the horizon shortly after the sun sets and we see a little sliver of a moon shining! So, we finally get to blow the trumpet and declare January 24th Day One!

Did any of that make sense?

I feel like I had to actually DO it a few times before I figured out how it all works.

But, really it is quite simple if you don't worry about the science behind it. When you see the new sliver of the moon, then that is the first day of the month on God's calendar!

Now that I thoroughly confused you, do you want to know how to tell when the first MONTH of the YEAR is on God's calendar?

For that, we turn to Exodus! (If I use one verse from each book of the Bible we will be here awhile! lol)

Photo by Rocsana Nicoleta Gurza on Pexels.com

Exodus 12 tells us when the "beginning of months is". Yep. Passover. Early spring. An in-depth study teaches us a few signs to look for to determine when we are at the right season for month ONE, day ONE. of the New Year. (hint: It's not January! BUT, we already knew that!)

But, I'll just tell you: It is when the barley is ready to harvest.

So, in ancient Israel, the watchmen would watch the moon change.

They would watch the seasons change.

As the barley grew from grass to grain, they watched. When they saw the barley was almost ready for harvest, they would watch the moon. When the first little sliver of the new moon shone, they would blow the trumpet and everyone would know it was the first day of the first month!

Now, get this! ONE person seeing the little sliver wasn't enough! They needed 2 or 3 WITNESSES who found ripe barley and saw the new moon in order to declare it so!

I guess you can probably see the significance here! And this is why I really love the feast days! As I am DOING all these very physical things and becoming more AWARE of the physical world around me, my heart is understanding spiritual things too!

And, quickly my mind is flooded with New Testament verses about harvest and witnesses and promises that one of these days we will SEE the sign in HEAVEN that we are so longing for. When the season is right. We must continue to watch!

Just as surely as the dark moon will shine again, and just as surely as the barley will become ripe and bow with fullness, Jesus WILL once again come in the clouds!

There will be TWO witnesses!

There will be a TRUMPET!

So, why not practice watching and waiting now?

There are several groups that watch for when the barley is ready to be harvested in Israel and when the first visible new moon is seen each month. Of course, they don't all agree. So, don't stress too much about it. We all know in part and see in part. Each year, each month, each day, we learn something new. We realize a truth in a deeper, more meaningful way. So, don't worry if you don't understand all the hows and whys. If God is leading you to go on this journey, do what you DO know and HE will guide you.

And don't forget LOVE!

In fact, if you are going to forget something... PRIDE would be a good thing to forget! Because this journey can be quite humbling!

Start watching the moon phases and tell me what you notice. Just a few more moons until Passover! (which actually occurs two weeks AFTER the new moon, so it is usually a full moon at that time- just in case I haven't confused you enough. See Exodus 12. You'll get it! ;) )

God bless you as we prepare...

The King Who Clung to God (part 1) By Sarah Whitney January 17, 2022

 He watched the flames licking the sides of the stones as the children leaped across the flames. Their shrieks were drowned out by the celebratory music. 

"Rejoice, my son! Now we will be blessed! We will have victory over our enemies. And, you will sit on the throne someday!"

"Long life and health to my son!"

His Dad was drunk, or maybe under the influence of some other substance. His eyes were red and wild. 

The boy stared. 

This wasn't a fun game. His siblings were terrified. Couldn't his Dad see that? They would carry the scars the rest of their lives if they even survived this ritual. But, the sight of his siblings silently screaming in the flames would be forever etched in their brother's mind. Closing his eyes didn't help. He tried to run, but his Father grabbed him, seemingly unaware of the terror in his eyes.

As he grew into a man, he often went for long walks, dreaming of the day he would become king. He secretly planned for the day he would decree the idols to be torn down. The cruel rituals stopped! The worship of pagan gods - could he, would he have the power to outlaw it all?

"They are nothing!" he muttered and spit on the ground. 

Sometimes he would hear the old prophet, Isaiah preaching.

"Don't listen to him!" his Dad would say. "He always has bad news. He's just a grumpy old man."

 But, the crowned prince didn't find him grumpy. He understood. Isaiah was putting words to the passions buried deep in his own soul.  As time went on he began to view Isaiah as his father.

"God is my salvation! My hope is in Him. I can trust Him." the prince repeated to himself what he heard Isaiah preach. "I won't trust in Egypt, or Assyria, or anyone else. God is greater than all of them!" 

He often wandered past a huge brass serpent on a pole. People would bow to it before passing by. Some even brought offerings, or their sick children, hoping they would be healed by looking at the image. "It's just an old piece of brass!" the prince would mutter. But, he didn't say anything. He couldn't, yet. "Moses gave us this serpent to worship." the king explained. "The serpent saved the lives of the people who were bit by poisonous snakes! It has healing power."

When the prince asked Isaiah about the snake on a stick, he explained the story a little differently. "God is the one with the power. Trusting and obeying God is what healed the people. Not the serpent. The serpent has no power."

The crowned prince studied hard and listened well to his teachers. He quietly began preparations for when he would sit on the throne. "The first thing I will do is fix the temple and open the doors again." he decided. "Or, maybe destroying the idols and high places should happen first." he wondered. 

It wasn't long and he heard the frantic cry. His father, the King was dead. Hezekiah was King of Judah! He sat on the throne of David. The crown was placed on his head. Now was the time he had been longing for since that dreadful day so many years ago.

"I have a new name for the brass serpent!" He decreed. "Let's call it 'Nehushtan'" he ordered. "Nehushtan?" the people wondered. "That means a piece of brass." 

"Yes!" the king agreed.

"And, I could use brass to make toilet seats for my royal bathroom, so break it down and make something more useful out of it!"

Some people gasped in horror at his irreverence. Would he be struck with leprosy for his rebellion?

King Hezekiah called for the priests. "Open the doors of the temple!" he commanded. A few priests showed up. Not nearly enough for the work of restoring the priestly roles. Many of them were not pure. However, there were Levites scattered around his jurisdiction who had hearts for God. So, it was decided that the Levites could join their brethren as much as possible, doing the Lord's work. 

Some have suggested that Hezekiah was preparing for the opening of the temple before he even became king. Why do they think that? Because II Chronicles 29:3 says it was in the very first month of his reign that the house of God was opened and the priests sanctified. The new king was wasting no time. 

He longed to celebrate Passover that first year, but there was not enough time to prepare. Happily, there was a clause in the law for just such a situation and they were able to celebrate the Passover and Unleavened Bread in the second month. The Feast was so meaningful and inspiring that a great revival spread throughout Jerusalem and beyond.

The king shared his heart with his people. II Chronicles 29:9 suggests, and historical accounts written by the Assyrians hint, that some of Hezekiah's own family members had been captured by King Sennacherib, King of Assyria. Maybe even his wife and daughters.  His siblings were gone, by the hand of his own father. His wife and children were gone by the hand of the king of Assyria. He had nothing left to lose. And no one left to hope in, but God.

"'It is in my heart to make a covenant with the God of Israel, that his fierce wrath may turn away from us. My sons (he addressed the Priests and Levites) the Lord has chosen you to stand before Him.." (II Chronicles 30:10)

They found the songs of David and Asaph and sang them once again. They carefully recorded the proverbs of Solomon (Proverbs 25:1) and as they purified themselves, and as they humbled themselves, and as they worshiped, a great thing happened in the hearts of the people. 

They softened. 

A great thing happened and their eyes were opened.

And, suddenly the king didn't even have to tell them what they should do. They themselves became disgusted with the idols around them. Archeologists have found ruins from this time period. Idols were torn down and replaced with toilets! Altars were destroyed and used as building stones for a nearby wall. 

"It is nothing!" Hezekiah had said. "They have no power."

"Trust God! Our only hope is in Him!" 

And, the people believed him. And, the people believed in God. And, He answered their prayers.

II Kings 18:5-6 says this about Hezekiah: 

    He trusted in the LORD God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him.

For he clave to the LORD and departed not from following him,

Great Kings reigned over Judah before and after him. 

What about King David who reigned many years before him? Or, the young King Josiah who reigned many years after? There was a great revival in His time also.

 But, somehow, neither of these kings, whose hearts were very much for God, trusted God quite like King Hezekiah.

War Stories and Little Boys

Reading the Bible is very different with my son than it was with the girls. I used to skim through, or even skip the war stories. But, those are his favorites. We are in 2 Chronicles now.

As I have been "forced" to examine these battles in more detail...

"Now tell me the story again, in your own words, please Mommy."

 "What did they do?! Can you read that part again?"

"This is the best one yet!!!"

I am noticing things I never really thought about before I had a little boy sharing his perspective with me. Here are three examples. Let me know your thoughts:

1- The King, or other leaders at that time, was/were always expected to ask God before he/they went to battle.

It didn't matter if this battle was similar to the one yesterday, or last year. They must ask God IF he wanted them to fight.

I never really thought about that before. If I have an "enemy" in my life, I usually presume God is angry with me for letting it "live" as long as I have and I should work as hard as I can to get it out of my life quickly. I don't think I ever stopped and asked, "God, Do you want me to fight this battle right now? Am I going to win?" like the "good kings" did.

2- Nearly every battle required a unique strategy.

Sometimes it was waiting, or singing. Sometimes it was using just a few soldiers, Sometimes it was a sneak attack. Sometimes it was even surrendering!

Just because a certain strategy has worked for me in the past doesn't mean it will always be the battle plan. I need to lay my current struggle before the Lord and ask Him how he wants me to combat the problem.

3- Very often it was said that the enemy was coming against the God of Israel.

There were a lot of reasons for battles, of course. Often was came because the people had turned away from God. 

Sin can definitely bring us into battles we should never have to fight. But, maybe, sometimes, we are doing the right things. Living in peace and harmony with our Creator and those around us. Suddenly, the Enemy comes against us! Might it be correct to say that the Enemy is actually coming against God? A mountain of angels armies and chariots of fire are ready to defend us! In these battles we can say with authority that God is on our side, so no one can stand against us! 

I had a hard time writing this. Is it true? Why do I so often believe that it is my fault that I am being attacked? That I somehow deserve this war that is raging. That this is "my" battle. Instead of the battle belonging to the Lord!

Have I been allowing the Enemy to walk all over me while I suffer like I deserve it? Am I really going to let him talk about my God that way?! Remind me, next time, to run toward that old giant with confidence! I am a child of the King of Kings and have every right to live in my home and harvest the fruit of my labor without anyone stealing away from me what God had blessed me with. God will defend us. Just like I would defend my child if something was attacking him.

If God is on our side, who can stand against us?

I wonder where we would be spiritually right now if we fought our battles like a little boy with a slingshot!

  

Little Known Bible Stories #6: Dem Bones

 This story is by request! :)

I guess most people know about Elisha.

In case you get them confused, Elisha was after Elijah.

Remember, Elijah is the one who was carried into heaven by a chariot of FIRE!! (II Kings 2)

Elisha learned as much as he could from Elijah before he was carried away. He asked for a double portion of the Holy Spirit that was on Elijah. God performed many miracles through Elisha. 

But, one day, even this mighty man of God got sick. His body was suffering from a sickness. King Joash, of Israel, came to visit Elisha on his death bed. Joash cried when he saw how sickly and frail the mighty man of God was. 

"Oh, my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof." King Joash famously cried.

Elisha had a conversation with King Joash and not long afterward he passed away. The country mourned Elisha and buried him in a sepulcher.

Elisha's body hadn't been in the ground quite a year when trouble came upon Israel. The Moabites were on the warpath! These were people of the wilderness. Bands of Moabite men would often tear through the countryside seeking to steal, kill and destroy anything they could get their hands on.

About this time a small funeral procession carried a man out to the graveyard. They were preparing to bury him when they saw a familiar plume of dust on the horizon! They knew what that meant. A band of Moabites was headed their way! Quickly, they decided to drop him into the closest sepulcher and high tail it out of there. 

The sepulcher happened to be Elisha's.

 They lowered the body down as quickly as they could.

"A little lower... almost there." 

"I don't think the Moabites see us yet... hurry..."

" Okay, he's down..."

"Hey, guys! Don't leave me down here!" their friend's voice came out of the hole.

"WHAT??!!!"

Well, evidently, as soon as the corpse touched Elisha's bones, he revived and stood on his feet! 

2 Kings 13:21 A whole story in just one verse, but what a story! I wish I knew more.

His friends must have been in quite a state of panic. 

And the poor guy who had died... 

and then revived...

only to be told he better run for his life because the Moabites were headed their way! 

Wow!

What kind of man Elisha must have been that the power of God was still pulsing through his bones a year after his death!

Elisha's God still lives today.

The power of God is still moving and miracles are still happening.

Sometimes even great prophets die.

But, sometimes, 

                                            when we least expect it, 

                                                                                            miracles happen too!

Lord,

Help me not get so overcome by the fear surrounding me that I miss seeing your power working right under my feet! You are awesome and mighty and powerful! And, I need YOU!!

written by: Sarah Whitney

When Nothing Helps

She must have felt hopeless, depressed, and maybe even like her life was meaningless. 

She had tried so many remedies. -spent all of her money on doctors and therapies that didn't work.

Yet, as Mark says everything she tried made the problem worse. Broken promise after broken promise. Friends and family getting her hopes up that this new doctor will help, or this new treatment will work. Only to dash her hopes. Only for her pain to be worse, her fainting spells more frequent, her bleeding heavier. 

And then they left. I mean, I presume they did. Gradually it was easier just not to be around her. Not to hear her, or see her. It was too painful to watch. And, besides, they had to be careful so they wouldn't catch whatever it was she had. They needed to be safe and clean. She understood. In a way, it was a relief. She was tired of hearing their suggestions. Had she heard about the new doctor or the newly discovered medicine? Or, the treatment facility? All the voices still rang in her head. She was tired of listening. Tired of trying. Tired, dare I say, of living? 

For 12 years she, no doubt, slept in a separate bed from her husband. Isolated in her own home. Not allowed to be in crowds. 12 years that she was alive, yet not living. She had missed weddings and funerals. She had eaten Passover alone and watched children building the sukkah from a distance. 

But, one day, she quit listening to all those voices around her and inside of her. She broke the rules. She left her house. She walked right into the crowd. 

"The Master is busy!" people said.

"It is an emergency! A little girl is dying!"

But, she didn't hear. It isn't that she didn't care, but, she thought that maybe she could reach out and touch the hem of his garment. The tzitzit hanging from the edge of His tallit. Each one representing a law. The laws she loved and followed. The laws that promised good things to those who obeyed. 

"If I touch His clothes I will be well!" she told herself. And, she was!

She got up. Walked right through that crowd. Touched the hem of his garment and felt something. She knew she had been healed.

Jesus knew it too. 

And he stopped.

He asked his disciples who had touched Him, but they didn't know. They were busy trying to keep Jesus from getting trampled. They were trying to keep everything on schedule. They were trying to help Jesus get to a sick little girl who was the daughter of someone important. They hadn't noticed the woman, they just saw a mob, a throng. 

They hadn't seen her.

But, Jesus saw her. He looked right at her.

"Daughter, your faith has made you whole; go in peace and be whole of your plague," Jesus said.

Her faith! Her faith in Jesus! Her faith that He could and would heal her.

And then, Matthew, Mark, and Luke go back to talking about Jarius' daughter. The crowd moves on. But, the woman is free! From that very hour, she never had an 'issue' with her 'plague' anymore! She went home in peace! Shalom! 

And, her family and friends rejoiced with her! She forgave them because she knew they were only trying to help. How do I know? Because forgiveness and healing go hand-in-hand. 

When she got off the couch and left her house and reached out for Jesus, He heard, he saw, he healed! 

 How often do we blame our friends and family who are advising us, or our doctors or counselors or pastors? How often do we spend our hard-earned money on all kinds of things that are supposed to "help"? And all the while Jesus is right outside our door. All we have to do is reach out and touch the Living Word of God. 

Lord, Help me to have Faith and Hope like this woman had. But, even more, help me to have Love. For Love conquers all!

PS- I know it doesn't say her friends and family treated her that way, but it does seem to be a reoccurring pattern in stories of others in the human family, so I presume her experience was similar. Besides, it appears she was by herself in the crowd.