Holy Sass…

Wednesday Wisdom 🙂

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Inspiration this week comes from the Book of Esther (the entire book) but specifically 4:13-14

Modecai sent this reply to Esther: “Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die.

Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”

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The book of Esther fascinates me. It is a story of a young woman with great courage and devote faith who unselfishly and bravely followed God’s call in order to save the Jewish people from political persecution during the reign of Xerxes (approximately 486-465 B.C.). In addition to the story being a profile in human courage, it also demonstrates how God masterfully works – in and through each of us – to care for his people.

Esther has what I like to joyfully refer to as: Holy Sass. She embraced God’s wisdom and savvy and used it to bravely destroy a selfish plot of mass murder and destruction. She did it with grace, whit, and just enough sassy attitude that she bested an evil scheme and changed the course of history. She gives the term “Girl Power” a whole new level of meaning 😉

Sass is an interesting word with a variety of connotations. My favorite farmer and I are blessed with three daughters. Over the years, we’ve known a bit of sass in our house. In fact, when Ashley Grace was about 8 she decided to try a bit of disrespectful sass (in the form of eye rolling at inopportune times)– something that her younger sisters quickly picked up on. That led to a new rule – 10 pushups for each eye roll or sign of disrespect. Twelve years later, all three of my girls kick out some impressive push-ups, but more importantly they learned a lesson in discretion.

The good kind of sass – the Holy Sass – is the courage that comes from God to respond with honor and strength when he calls for you.

It’s not a disrespectful “eye-rolling” sass, it’s a boldness and courage that leads to active faith.

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Ashley Grace, Megan and Karyn – circa 2006

I spend a lot of time around girls. I often see a quiet obedience in them. But as they reach the teenage and young adult years, I also watch them struggle with boldness and courage. I think a lot of that stems from an inherent lack of confidence paired with a faith that has yet to reach maturity. I used to be that girl. In fact, some days I still am.  It’s hard to truly and consistently trust God. It’s difficult to believe that you are strong enough – smart enough – worthy enough – to make a meaningful difference in this huge world that He created. It’s frightening to think that God trusts you enough to ask you to fight for Him.

Esther did something incredibly important as she prepared to act on Modecai’s message. She packed her faith and looked up – spending three days (in community with others) fasting and praying for courage and direction from God before she went to see the King. She didn’t act rashly and she didn’t act alone. As a result, God’s grace carried her through the call and enabled all of the pieces to come together.

In my own faith journey, I’ve learned to both listen and pray before I act. Honestly, I used to be terrible at this but God finds creative ways to grow us 🙂 Some days I still struggle with discretionary boldness and courage, but I am learning that prayer helps me to pack my Holy Sass. It not only ensures that I am doing what God asks of me – it also brings me peace and confidence that my actions are Godly.

We worship a good and a great God. He asks us to believe. He’s the author of Holy Sass. In Malachi 3:10 he tells us, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!” Each time that we believe and we accept that God has uniquely placed us for good, we respond to this verse from Malachi and put Him to the test. We give Him the ability to deliver us and to deliver others – Just as Esther did so many years ago.

I pray that each one of us will look up to find the Holy Sass that God grants – that we will act with boldness and courage in faith, worshiping the One who holds our hearts as we hold His hand.

An Esther Moment…

Wednesday Wisdom 🙂

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Inspiration this week comes from the book of Esther 4: 13-14

“Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”

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I spent last week studying the book of Esther. It’s a fabulous read and I believe it to be meaningful for a variety of reasons. My favorite brunette celebrates the book of Esther just as she enjoys the book of Ruth – She loves that God uses a woman to play a “hero” role in order to fulfill an important purpose.

I love the fact that Esther demonstrates that God moves in quiet ways — not just in boldness. The Bible is full of ways that demonstrate God’s power. He is clearly great. But, I think that Esther demonstrates that greatness can also be subtle. God’s miracles are diverse —  yet they are all meaningful, no matter where they fit on the drama meter.

The above verse occurs at a pivotal time in both Esther’s life and in the history of the Jewish people. On the verge of tragedy – with the threat of mass destruction and assassination – Esther listens to her mentor and packs her faith to step up and use her new position as queen in order to quietly and masterfully allow God to save both herself and her people. She demonstrates that a practiced loyalty to faith allows for a strong and courageous stand during a moment of crisis.

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Likely each and every one of us will have an Esther moment or two in our lives — Times when we are called to do something subtle, yet bold as we answer God’s call. It may occur in a moment when we can clearly see the purpose, or it may occur amidst a foggy cloud of uncertainty. I’ve come to realize that the clarity in which we understand the Esther moment is much less important than our ability to respond with a servant heart in order to move forward with courage.

I had an Esther moment in April of 2018. It occurred when a boy that I had been tutoring got into trouble and landed in jail. While the Holy Spirit’s call for me to help him was quiet, it was also firm and clear.

Go and love him.

I ended up bailing him out of jail and bringing him to our home to finish his high school career. 383 days with Joe – a young man with a challenging past whom God decided deserved a second chance. During the time that our lives melded together into a new family, the crystal ball was often fuzzy in terms of detail despite the clearness of the call to be together. Each day, we tried to walk in faith believing that God’s purpose was meaningful even though we couldn’t see the finish line.

Some in our town thought we were crazy to bring a stranger into our home. Some watched from a distance, undecided as to whether we’d made the right decision. And, a few opened their arms in support of our faith journey as a new family. We persevered clinging to the call to love.

Joe’s been gone a month now, and the crystal ball still remains fuzzy. I’ve decided that’s okay. There’s a reason that my view is fuzzy and God’s is clear.  The details of why God chose us and Joe to come together for a time may never be revealed. But, I believe that God is great and God is good. So, I don’t have to fully understand it — I just have to believe in the call and answer it in love.

The part of the journey that is clearest to me is that the time that we spent together deepened our family’s faith as we willingly participated in Jesus’ mission. We answered the call in a moment of crisis — willing to take a stand and own our faith. I learned many things from Joe. Things that I carry with me everyday that offer a new perspective for me as a Christian, a wife, a mom, and a coach.

I am grateful for that.

God works through ordinary people and is present even when His hand may seem invisible. Each individual assignment from God matters. It may seem risky and possibly scary at times, but it is always meaningful and we never walk alone when we answer the call.

To me, living in faith means trusting God, following his call, and stepping up during the Esther moments in life.