Days of feasting & gladness

They weren’t expecting an average day where the highs barely peak and the lows barely break below the surface; they expected to be slaughtered. 

But the most unlikely opposite occurred, and the Jewish people were exuberant! To celebrate, Mordecai and Esther established a yearly holiday for their nation called Purim (find details about it in Esther chapter 9). It was to be a time filled with tasty food, gift-giving, and joy, because their worst nightmare was surprisingly averted, completely contrary to the outcome they had imagined.  

Looking ahead to our own holiday season - a time of tasty food, gift-giving, and joy - I’m setting my heart to celebrate Christmas as a shocking reversal of expectations. Humanity’s worst nightmare was averted through the most unlikely beginning: 

The eternal Son of God became a human embryo. 

A barn became a royal birthplace. 

A virgin became a mother. 

Dirty shepherds became the first witnesses of the King. 

Jesus would live a life of expectations turned on their heads, and this pattern of reversal would continue into His death and culminate in His resurrection. It’s because of Him that we, who were doomed to everlasting death, can instead experience eternal life. Could we ever imagine anything like this outcome?

During Advent, let’s remember Purim: There is no reversal we’ve been longing for that’s too drastic for our God; in fact, it seems He’s attracted to doing the opposite of what we’d naturally expect. 

May your celebration of Christ prompt days of feasting and gladness this season! I’ll be signing off until after the New Year, but I’ll be back in 2024:)

Esther, a poem

An opulent setting 

stuns the senses 

to imagine it, 

but characters emerging 

repulse my thoughts 

of stepping foot in it: 

Castrated servants 

at every beck and call, 

Drunken officials 

declaring new laws, 

Kidnapped virgins 

perfecting their flaws,

Rejected concubines 

with no hope at all.

An orphan crowned queen

stays silent

to preserve herself,

but the course of history

begs the courage

to deny herself:

One single enemy

threatening her nation,

Death by decree

sealing his ambition,

Her only family

calling her to action,

A dose of reality

leveraging her station.

An overthrown scheme

seems sufficient

to applaud her,

But reversal in Purim

uncovers someone

who is greater:

God, Elohim,

from beginning to end.

Yahweh, I am,

holding fast the covenant.

Almighty, Shaddai,

giving shelter in the wind. 

El Yon, Most High,

reigning even when unnamed.

What’s happening?

“...but the city of Susa was thrown into confusion.” Esther 3:15

Considering the latest reports of global antisemitic outrage, it’s not difficult to imagine the chaos that erupted back in Esther’s day. I wonder if the Persian edict of pending Jewish annihilation prompted hateful rioting ahead of time? Was anything from racism to violence against the Jews justifiable in the meantime since King Ahasuerus had already set a date that sealed their fates? Could neighbors who were once tolerant be trusted? Was it best to fight or flee? 

If faithful Jews were among those living in Susa, I picture them turning to the book of Psalms to guide their thoughts, emotions, and faith through the looming disaster. Perhaps they landed in Psalm 77. Although you may not find yourself oppressed and threatened by terror as they were - and as the Jews are today - it doesn’t take physical war to throw us into confusion.  Maybe you can relate to Asaph’s state of mind in Psalm 77:

(v.1-6) He’s crying, seeking, distressed, prayerful, inconsolable, groaning, faint-hearted, speechless, sleepless, troubled, rejected, questioning, and longing.

His gut-wrenching anxieties about God are relatable when our world, internationally or personally, turns upside-down. If we draw conclusions based on confusing circumstances, those conclusions will also be upside-down:

(v.7) Is the Lord’s rejection eternal? He’s defined by rejection; it’s what he’s done all along. 

Is His grace historical? He used to be gracious, but those days are over.

(v.8) Is His love invisible? Since I can’t see His love right now, it can’t be real.

Is His Word unreliable? What he promises isn’t strong enough to be guaranteed.

(v.9) Is his care forgetful? He must have lost track of humanity, or at least of me.

Is his intention spiteful? He’s mad at me, and, as a punishment, He withholds help.

As if Asaph has vomited up his perspective and emptied his heart of poison, the Psalm takes a turn at its mid-point:

(v.10-20) Asaph decides to remember, ponder, and meditate on God’s past activity, miraculous intervention, mighty deeds, holy ways, greatness, rescue, control over natural forces, invisible presence, and shepherding guidance. 

When we ask, “What’s happening?!”, we look back so that we can keep looking forward. 

“God led His people like a flock, by the hand of Moses and Aaron.” Psalm 77:20

Current historic events

Days before the war began in Israel, the book of Esther began to pull at my heart. Little did I know how modern the threat of Jewish annihilation would feel or how visual Haman’s plot would become. Immersed in Esther, it seemed to me that the appalling violence was 2500 years in the making, fulfilling a long-delayed scheme.  

Whenever current struggles or current events converge with what I’m currently studying, I embrace God’s Word as sovereignly meeting me in that moment with necessary truth and perspective.  So, through the filter of 500 B.C., I pray with hope for this tragedy in 2023:

God of Jacob, 

When rage, drunkenness, racism, and sexism, control politics, 

I trust that you’re still on your throne.  

Esther 1:10-22; 5:9-13

You change history through those who refuse to comply. 

Give courage.

Esther 1:12; 3:2; 4:16

You alter the trajectory through insignificant “coincidences”. 

Align each moment.

Esther 6 

You elevate the underdog. 

Raise leaders.

Esther 8

You turn mourning to joy when you intervene. 

Spare the suffering.

Esther 8:16-17; 9:20-28

You preserve the legacy of the ones who stand for the welfare of humanity. 

Reverse these events.

Esther 10:3

May it be so.

“The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is here among us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.” Psalm 46:7