Don’t you just love the way God intervenes in life?!
Sometimes it’s in subtle ways, like prompting you to pray for something or talk to someone, it could be finding a bit of money or some marvel of nature, or even disturbing your sleep.
We can take these things to be small coincidences or even just random occurrences, they are quite easy to explain away. However, like we see in Esther, a series of ‘coincidences’ led to the freedom of many people. It led to recognition and promotion as well as judgement and condemnation. Sometimes the small, unusual details of our lives can be dismissed by us as unusual circumstances. I guess my encouragement to you today, is to not be so quick to write off the unusual. To instead consider - could God be in this?
Reading Esther, Chapters 5-7 we see plenty of these unusual small situations coincide in just one day. These chapters outline the events after Esther’s first banquet, all joined together by little snippets of God’s intervention in subtle ways.
First, Haman’s jealous hatred of Mordecai is kindled yet again and reaches a crescendo as he instructs for a gallows to be built so he can hang him (not for any notable reason either really). Then, the king cannot sleep, so what does he do? He orders for the big book of history to be read to him. It just so happens to be read that Mordecai, years ago, was a hero. Mordecai undermined an assassination plot and received no acclaim for it. This concerned the king, and so he spent more wakeful hours considering how to rectify this oversight. Then Haman is spotted in the grounds, so he seeks his counsel and commands Haman to give the acclaim he described to his mortal enemy Mordecai. Lots is going on there - but can you see the subtle intervention of the Holy Spirit in these circumstances? Can you see that God is involved in every part of that process?
The king was not ill, or disturbed in order to be awake, he just couldn’t sleep - why was that? And why did he decide at that very time to have the history books read and just so happen to come across the tale of Mordecai?! That seems far too many coincidences to me to be by chance and not orchestrated by God! All of these little incidents we read about in Esther clearly outline that whilst people are getting on with their normal lives, God is there, God is at work.
In the same way God is intervening in your life too.
Watch out for the little promptings of the Holy Spirit. Look out for the way God is working, even in the small things. If you are wakeful, ask God why, if you find something that was lost, praise Him for it, if you notice something beautiful and new, thank Gos for creating it. Our lives are full of small details that God has put there for us to take notice of. Even if it’s a broken nights sleep, or a chance meeting with someone. Be aware and be prepared to see God at work. Like in Esther, the small details can come together to cause a massive life change for others. So, be attuned to what God is doing. Have eyes that see the blessings around you, the small moments of joy that God gives you, the little promptings to talk or pray with someone. In the same way that God uses others to be a blessing to us, He also uses you to be a blessing to others, so keep mindful that God wants your attention everyday, and consider what can you do that God wants you to today? God may well be song you to change someone’s life as well as your own. Be prepared to see the subtle things and do the little things God asks. You may end up being the answer to someone else’s prayer.
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