Esther 1:12 – “But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s bidding conveyed through the eunuchs.  THEN the king became extremely angry, and his rage consumed him.”

As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word of God today, I was drawn to a verse in Esther.   The situation of Esther 1:12 is intriguing.   As I read, the Lord began to impress upon me the manifold danger and damage of excessive anger that consumes the individual.

In Esther 2:1, there is a hint that the king regretted his harsh action born out of his rage.  I say that because after his anger subsided, he remembered the Queen. 

Ephesians 4:26 enjoins us to be angry but not let it produce sin.  Matthew 5:21-23 warns that excessive anger is the seed of murder and places us in danger of judgment.

Anger has consequences.   We like to call it righteousness indignation, but it is often not borne from righteousness.  Anger can be a sin and produce sinful attitudes and actions.   Anger left unchecked and excessive produces depression.  It damages relationships and causes internal stress that affects our bodies, souls, and spirits.

Out of rage, words that do damage and can never be recovered are spoken.   

Anger is evidence of heart sadness.   Joy and anger are not compatible.  Anger is evidence of a sense of powerlessness and loss of control.  It came from a sense of shame, anxiety, inadequacy, and even isolation.  It is rooted in pride, a sense of entitlement, or hurt.  It is an expression of fear. 

Physically excessive anger that consumes is irrational and releases toxins that destroy health.  It hinders fellowship with God and others.   It hardens the heart and blames others and God.

The only thing that should consume us is our passion for God.  I hate sin but refuse to focus on the sinner.  Today, our world is consumed with hate, and many are consumed with anger.  Hate justifies itself, elevating the hater to god status and the hated to devil status.  

The king allowed his wounded pride to boil over into rage that consumed him and caused him to act rashly.   

Love and hate are incompatible.   Love focuses outside self, but hate focuses on self.  If we belong to Christ, rage has no legitimate place in us.  As believers, we must learn to love everyone, even those who hate us.  We forgive with our hearts and bless those who curse us.  We can expose sin and error without allowing hate to consume us.

Excessive anger reveals a loss of control, and we give power to those we are angry at.   What consumes us controls us.  Therefore, just as we have received the love of God, we must give love.  Let love be the consuming passion of our hearts.  Love others because God loves you.

Reject anger and never let it gain a foothold; it will poison the soul and lead us into the destruction of hate!

2 Timothy 3:16-17 – “EVERY SCRIPTURE (not some but ALL) is INSPIRED by God AND is useful for teaching, for reproof (exposing sin to bring correction), and for training in righteousness, THAT the person dedicated to God may be capable and equipped for every good work.”

What a day to be alive; difficulties, distractions, time constraints, and demands are ever-present.   The world is growing crazier by the hour.  Yet, God is still God and is incredibly long-suffering!  His love never diminishes, nor does mine.

As I read, prayed, and mused on the Word of God today, I was drawn to two realities.   The world is going to hell in a handbasket, and God is long-suffering.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 motivated me again.  The reality and the declaration of the Bible that Every Scripture (not some but ALL) is Inspired by God is incredible.   We add to that the declaration that it is useful for teaching, reproof (exposing sin to bring correction), and training in righteousness to bring us to maturity and equip us, which is doubly powerful.

Get this in your spirit – “The Word of God reveals the character and heart of God.”

Job 23:23-24 – “If a man have an angel to whom one would listen once in a thousand times, the angel would show him the way of uprightness 24 AND be gracious to him and say, deliver this man lest he go down to corruption; he has found salvation…”

God’s presence is permeating the air today!   His plans are unfolding in brilliance as we embrace His presence and allow His heart and ours to become entwined.

Job 23:23-24 exploded in my heart.    If one in a thousand warnings is heeded, God’s graciousness extends mercy.  That is long-suffering!  That is God!

Psalm 121:3b – “God IS my keeper; He will Never forget or ignore me…”

Psalm 124:1-2 asks, “What if God had not been there for us?”   It would have been a total disaster and destruction, but He Was and Is…

Psalm 125:1 reminds us that we are Unshakable in any shaking “if” we trust God!    We are as Steadfast as God Himself because He is in us, and we are totally dependent upon Him.  That is the deposit of God in us, our foundation, our hope.

Psalm 127:2 should be read, memorized, meditated upon, and the focus of every day.  “It is really senseless to work so hard from early morning till late at night, toiling to make a living for fear of not having enough.  GOD can provide for His lovers even while they sleep.”   That is not an invitation to laziness nor encouragement to abandon ambition, but reveals the benefit and peace of trusting God, not our ability.

Psalm 130:3-4 reveals God’s incredible mercy, grace, and love.  “LORD, if You measured us and marked us with our sins, who would ever have their prayers answered?  4 BUT Your forgiving love is what makes You so wonderful.  No wonder You are loved and worshipped.”

God’s incomparable love, incredible mercy, and patience are astounding.  We deserve none of it, but He gives it anyway!  Therefore, search the Word, let it reveal the heart of God, correct, instruct, and inspire you.  Treasure the Promises!   Be transformed by His grace and become one well-equipped to manifest Him.

God is our victory.   God is ever-present, and He invites us to enter in and become!  Seize the victory, and in your victory, lead others to freedom!  

Have a fantastic day and remember that victory is ours in Jesus!

2 Timothy 3:1-5 – “But understand this, that in the last days, difficult times will come. ² For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, ³ unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, savage, opposed to what is good, ⁴ treacherous, reckless, conceited, loving pleasure rather than loving God. ⁵ They will maintain the outward appearance of religion but will have repudiated its power.  So avoid people like these.”

As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word, the Last Days, and the church (Christ’s Body) filled my thoughts.   2 Timothy 3 and other passages in Scripture describe the conditions and characteristics of the Last Days.   It resembles newspaper headlines that describe today’s world.

Difficult, troubled, trying, and perilous times characterized that era.  People will have an inordinate love for themselves and become increasingly selfish and self-centered.  

2 Timothy 3 lists greedy, boastful, proud, arrogant, blasphemous, rebellious, undisciplined, ungrateful, entitled, unholy, irreconcilable, slanderous, savage, filled with hate, unloving, no self-control, treacherous, opposing the good, moral, and right, and driven by pleasure rather than God.   What a list!  Verse 5 says, “They will maintain the outward appearance of religion but will have repudiated its power.”

In Genesis 1:28, God gave Adam authority and dominion.  In Genesis 9:2, He gave that authority to Noah.  He gave it to the nation of Israel and, finally, the church (believers).

Today, much of the Church has lost that power.   How did that happen?  That is too lengthy a discussion to address fully in a short post.   But let’s highlight or list some ways.

• We have allowed Babylon to infect and infest the Church.
• There is evidence that the Church has become a flavorless entity.  (Our salt has lost its saltiness.  We’ve become like the world.) 
• It has become a sleeping church.
• It has become a fatalistic church. 

(Live and let live, unaffected by sin in the church and world).

• It has become a futuristic church.

(The battle is now, with no enemies in heaven to defeat or souls to win.)

• It has become a compromising church.

(Overly interested in being politically correct and tolerant at the expense of morals and biblical precepts).

• It is frequently an ignorant church.

(Unaware and uninformed because of the dearth of gospel preaching and teaching.  Feel good preaching, not life-transforming challenges).

• It has become an unforgiving church.

(The church is made up of individual people.  If we want to be triumphant, we must be forgiving.)

• It has ceased to be a victorious church.

Jesus said His church would prevail and be unstoppable by the powers of darkness.   We are Victorious through the Blood of Jesus.   Forgiven, filled, transformed, and possessing the authority of heaven.   Demons should cringe when we show up.

Let’s set our hearts to being who Jesus says we are and possess the promises, enforcing the victory of the Cross.   Let us live with “No fear!” No holding back!  No compromise!   More than conquerors!  Let’s do the works He did and watch Him do the greater works through us!   Today is Victory Day!  Today is our day!  Today is Life Day!

May the Grace, Peace, Power, and Provision of the LORD be yours today!

2 Chronicles 33:10 – “The LORD confronted Manasseh and his people, but they paid no attention.”

As I read, prayed, and pondered the Word of God today, I was reminded of our humanity.   We sometimes seek counsel and help from sources other than God.   We may even believe God is doing the alignment.   The result will be lack, delay, disappointment, disillusionment, and ultimately defeat.    During trials, we tend to look for solutions that make sense to us.   Sometimes, simple trust and obedience do not make sense to the human mind.

King Hezekiah’s son Manasseh became a kid king (12 years old).   He did evil in the sight of God, rebuilt the high places, set up altars to Baal, made Asherah poles, worshipped the stars, and even corrupted God’s temple with false altars. (We are God’s temple).

In 2 Chronicles 33:10, it is stated, “The LORD confronted Manasseh and his people, but they paid no attention.”   How often do we ignore the confrontation of the Spirit because it doesn’t match what we want?   GOD sent the Assyrian King against them.

The picture of pain is incredible.   They put hooks on his nose, bound him in bronze chains, and deported him to Babylon.   In v. 12, we read, “In his pain, Manasseh asked the LORD his God for mercy AND truly humbled himself before the God of his ancestors.”   The key is that he genuinely humbled himself.

Victories do not guarantee ease, as King after King realized.   Winning a victory does not ensure, insulate, or isolate from attacks.   Repentance brings restoration.   God may and likely will open the doors of darkness to bring us to light.

In verse 13, we see a powerful revelation and reminder. “When he prayed to the LORD, the LORD responded to him and answered favorably his cry for mercy. The LORD brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then (catch this), Manasseh realized that the Lord is the true God.

From then on, he acted faithfully.   Sometimes, God has to withdraw His protection to bring us to the truth.

The question in my heart is, “What is it that we are trusting for our fulfillment?”   If we tie God’s purposes and our assignments to anything but Him alone, we may be near a place of deception where we are creating idols of the heart and mind.   We may be subverting God’s plan.   He needs nothing to fulfill His purposes.   

If our hope is lodged in some event to come, we might want to ask, “AM I truly trusting God or that thing, person, or event?”   One leads to victory, the other to disappointment and defeat.

My heart is being challenged regarding having unrestricted confidence in Him. Only trust Him! Only Him!

May His blessings flood your life today!

2 Chronicles 26:3-5, 16 – “Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah, who was from Jerusalem. ⁴ He did what the Lord approved, just as his father Amaziah had done. ⁵ He followed God during the lifetime of Zechariah, who taught him how to honor God. As long as he followed the Lord, God caused him to succeed… ¹⁶ But once he became powerful, his pride destroyed him. He disobeyed the Lord his God. He entered the Lord’s temple to offer incense on the incense altar.”

I spent a restless night, and as I awoke, I was drawn to the reality of 2 Chronicles 26, specifically about King Uzziah.   He became king at 16 and reigned for 52 years.   He followed the LORD, and (v.5) says, “As long as he followed the LORD, God caused him to succeed.”   He became famous and received much support. Life was good.    Then, in verse 16, we read, “But once he became powerful, his pride destroyed him.”

I heard in my heart, “Pride is seldom a problem when we are weak, facing problems, and need help.”    Pride grows when we achieve victories and accomplishments, and think we did it ourselves.   Pride is dependent only on the self.   Humility depends on God. Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.  King Saul fell when he stopped seeing himself as small.   It is a repeated event in life, the Bible, and human history.

Pride is a spiritual cancer that blocks a true view of self, others, and God. It deceives the heart and mind, elevating the self to the center. It fills the heart with entitlement – I deserve it because of who I am. You owe me because… (insert anything there).

Spiritual victories can become seed beds for Pride.   Pride trusts the flesh and forgets the beginning.   Pridefulness is a painfully lonely life. It trusts no one, depends on no one, inordinately loves itself, and is selfish. Pride demands to be served; humility serves.

A heart filled with pride is spiritually blind, indifferent, hard, and harsh. It is intolerant and unfeeling of the needs of others. The self is the center, and it dethrones God in the heart.  Pride, human selfish Pride, will not inherit the kingdom.

It would behoove us to reread and meditate on the Beatitudes.   We have nothing we did not receive from God.   Therefore, it is not us but Him and His Grace. He must increase, but I must decrease.

Let’s be grateful and bold but not prideful and arrogant. Pride destroys, love and humility restore!

May your day be filled with His presence and, in humility, receive His matchless grace!