Categories
Christian Living

You Were Placed Where You Are For A Specific Purpose

Esther was the queen, but she had never let her nationality be known. Her cousin Mordecai was outside the palace and Esther felt he was making a scene by mourning in sackcloth and ashes. She sent a message to ask why. Here is basically what was said between the two of them:

Mordecai: “The reason that I am in sackcloth and ashes is that your husband (the king) has decreed that all of us who are of our nationality should be put to death in the near future.”

Esther: “That’s too bad. I am sorry to hear it. I didn’t know about it. But I can’t do anything about it because I have not been called into the king’s presence for a month, and the law says if I go without being summoned, I could die.”

Mordecai: “Do not imagine that just because you now live in the king’s palace that you will escape the death penalty that all of us are under. Realize that if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will still arise for the Jews from another place. And who knows? Maybe you have attained this position of royalty for such a time as this?”

Esther: “I understand what you are saying and I agree, so go and assemble all the Jews in the city, and fast for me for three days. I will do the same thing. And then I will go in to the king, which is against the law; and if I die, I die.”

Mordecai tells Esther that if she kept silent and did nothing, it wouldn’t really matter, because deliverance would still come from another source. Mordecai realized that the hand of God is always moving and he places us in specific positions for specific purposes. He knows that Esther is on the throne for a purpose.

Esther did not accidentally win a beauty contest. She was not accidentally the one who became queen. She is there for a very definite purpose, and God has been arranging this all the time. He is prepared for this event. God knows what is coming. That is why we can trust Him.

Esther could have given in to her fears and said: “God, my desires are that I just keep living in the palace and what I want is for You to work without using me. I want You to bend your plans to my desires.”

But instead, once Esther saw the truth that Mordecai revealed to her, she basically said: “God, you have a desire for me to do something which I am scared about – I may even die because of attempting it. But so be it. You’ve placed me here for this exact moment. I will bend my desire to Your will.”

I love the opening words of the poem, God Knows

And I said to the man who stood at the Gate of the Year:
“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”

And he replied:
“Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”

So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.

We can trust God. When we put our hand in His hand, He has the power to hold us up for His purposes.

And He has a purpose for you. God has placed you in this time in the history of this world for a specific purpose. He has placed you in your position in your family for a specific purpose. He has placed you in your business for a specific purpose. He has placed you in your community for a specific purpose. It is to lead the people in each of those areas into a deeper knowledge of who God is as they watch you boldly live for Him.

He has plans for you to impact your mission field – your family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors.

Will you meet the challenge that He has purposed for you, in spite of your fears?

Just like Esther, you were placed here FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS!

a graphic of a clock with the words "for such a time as this" reminding us of our specific purpose for life

Categories
Christian Living

Avoiding the Fear of Death

We all have fears…
            …heights, confined spaces, flying, spiders, alien abductions!

Or maybe one of your big fears is that ugly, old Grim Reaper.
Are you afraid of death?
photo of a scythe symbolizing fear of death
I have spent time with people who are extremely brave in the face of danger, yet who are afraid to die. I’ve been asked the question: “How do you get to a place where you have no fear of death?”

My belief is that our way out of every fear (even fear of death) is increased trust in God. He tells me that He has this thing called “my life” in His hands and under control. The question is whether I trust that to be true. Because the more I trust Him and believe His Word, the less fear I have – even of that moment when I’ll take my last breath.

In fact, Jesus calls us into a weird paradox – to embrace death when we choose life with Him – death to self. “When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die.” He tells us: To live is Christ; & to die is gain. Simply meaning that for every Christian, when we leave this earth, we will get to be with Him – and that is going to be better than anything we’ve ever experienced on this life…
           …Better than the moment of saying “I do” and kissing your spouse on your wedding day; better than the moment of holding your tiny newborn baby in your arms for the first time. Death will still be better because the next moment after death I’ll be with Jesus. I think a lot of us still have doubts about the truth of this idea, but until we trust it to be true, we will be afraid of death.

“Fleeing from death is the shortest path to a wasted life.”

We are all called to die to self, such that even if our very lives are taken due to our belief in Christ, it does not matter to us. But we wonder, if I truly have to die for Christ, then how does that benefit anyone? How does that make God look great to others?

“If being a Christian costs you your life, how will that help you make much of Christ? Many have made God look great through their death. When the hour comes for everything to be taken from us but Christ, we magnify Him by saying: “In Him I have everything and more. To die is gain.” If we learn to die like that, we will be ready to live. And if we don’t learn this, we waste our lives.”

What are you afraid of?
And how have you gotten past the fear of death? (even if you are still afraid of snakes!)


— brian rushing
(quotes by Jon Piper in Don’t Waste Your Life)