By Chris Martin
My daughter was born in April 2020. Obviously, it was a bit of a tumultuous time as COVID-19 was at its first peak. No friends or family could visit the hospital when she was born, and we were discouraged from having visitors for a few weeks. We had been trying to get pregnant for a couple of years, and we weren’t sure if it was going to happen. When we welcomed Magnolia into the world, we wept with tears of joy, we praised God for His answer to our prayers, and we have tried to honor God in our stewardship of our daughter. Maggie’s safe arrival, even amidst dire global circumstances, was a beautiful provision after years of discouragement.
Toward the end of Esther, we see the Jewish people feel the release of relief and deliverance. Following the execution of Haman for his plot to kill the Jews, Queen Esther inherits Haman’s property and appoints Mordecai as steward of it. What sweet irony we see when we trust the Lord to work in His mysterious ways!
Following this transaction, King Ahasuerus fulfilled Queen Esther’s request to free the Jewish people. It’s unlikely any of them imagined their freedom would come by decree of the king himself. Messengers were sent out from the king’s residence to deliver the good news to the Jewish people and, as Scripture tells us, this development led to a celebration filled “with gladness, joy, and honor” (Esther 8:16). Not only had God delivered His people that day, but the threat of Haman had been completely eliminated. Their oppressor was now dead, and their fear and mourning had been turned into utter joy.
Do you recognize the hand of God at work in this world? And when you see the Lord at work, are you overcome with joy and driven to worship Him? Do you seek to honor Him or those through whom He has worked? All too often, we experience the blessing and deliverance of God and find ourselves worshiping the positive developments of our lives instead of worshiping God Himself. As those who have been rescued once and for all time by our Savior, Jesus Christ, we have every reason to be glad: our deliverance has come, and it has no end.
Pray and ask that God would soften your heart to praise Him for the ways in which He works in your life. Whether He’s delivered you from some kind of oppressive rule like that of the Jews in Esther, or He has simply given you a beautiful baby girl like He did for us last spring—make time to praise God for His goodness, His faithfulness, and all His mysterious ways.
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