Tuesday, October 6, 2015

A Portrait of Poise

Two girls of ours who are fantastic, smart women. I am not bragging. I am stating a fact. God gets the glory.
First of all,I will hasten to say that any Christian daughter of yours could be listed here as well. I picked these two photos because they are of my current and beloved...And what I had available.
Raising godly daughters has stretched me. Stretched me far beyond the neat and tidy ideal I used to believe was It.
Elv has been teaching from the story of Esther lately. Esther has finally reached my understanding. I am so excited about this. Finally, with the help of my daughters and Esther's story, I am going to learn how to handle fear and how to combat the Enemy. By God's grace.
Often lately, the girls have comforted me with strength and common sense gained through their own struggle/battle/victory when I face raw fear now for the first time in my life.
The pretty, put-together, Queen Esther finding out that she and her family were to be put to death did not succumb to fear and fainting. Nor moods and moanings. Not even panic or hand wringing. She didn't get on the phone to Mordecai and instruct him in screeches and tears to DO SOMETHING! I would have.
I would have so messed things up!
Esther handled stress by prayer and fasting with her maids, and having time to be pretty and plan banquets, and staying thoughtful and kind to everyone. She was even kind to that odious Haman, the perpetrator!
Besides, God was doing stuff in the background that was perfectly timed.
Esther was perfect because she had strength and poise to draw on in her hour of need. As a result, her appeal was successful.
I suppose none of us girls are ever going to be an Esther. But we have little excuse not to pray, we and our maids like-wise, constantly. We ought to take care of our wardrobes and our nails so that we present ourselves appropriately for any given situation. We should stay connected to our Source of strength and holiness. We must learn to use time as our friend. God works in the process of events that take time. Three days of fasting and praying. Then we shall manage to stand in the court and wait quietly, maintaining poise over our pounding hearts in the heat of the moment or the panic of rising fear.
To all of you daughters, being daughters, raising daughters, Esther knew what she was doing. She had resources to draw on. So do we.

3 comments:

  1. Amen!!! Esther has been on my mind recently too. Similar thoughts. And she planned several banquets before she came out with her appeal. There is patience and proper respect for you. God help me and all of us. :). --Sharon

    ReplyDelete
  2. Do you think she had a better understanding of men than some of us do? Specifically, the men she was dealing with? Am I a good student of the men in my life? I think sometimes I think that if I can say it right, I don't have to wait for the right time to say it. It's a recipe for disaster. And I'm not just saying wait until the man has a full stomach. I mean, wait until I have a clear mind.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Esther's way. Pray. Trust God. Wait. and Rest in God's providence. I read a verse the other day......Jeremiah 33:2-3 It Blessed me. Now, let me go create some beauty in this house and get on with real. Even if I need something to change and now!

    ReplyDelete

This blog has moved!

Please click here to see the latest from Stone House Scribblings.