HSBC Coffeebreak Devotional

"And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight, more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti."
Esther 2:17

Ah. A story that delights the female soul, that a king would desire you above all others in the land and make you his queen. I recently read a novel by Tommy Tenney called Hadassah; One Night with the King. It takes the story of Esther and creates a fascinating look at events surrounding the life of Esther.

Esther is everything females want to be. She is brave. She is beautiful. She is desirable, patient and wise. She is strong in her faith. However, when I read the story in its entirety, I find Esther was also things that weren't desirable. She was orphaned. How sad. No one wants that element in their Cinderella story. She wasn't the king's only lover. Ouch. No female anywhere wants that in her diary. She was forced to keep a secret that endangered her life. Hello, STRESS! While it makes for a good storyline, to live with that kind of stress, would have been horrible. Her faith in God remains evident and ultimately, it is her faith in God that is the reason this story has such a Cinderella, happily ever after element to it. She goes before the king knowing her life could (by the law) be ended in doing so. She puts her faith in God and in Esther 4:16 says, "I will go in unto the king, which is not according to the law; and if I perish, I perish." She was strong in her faith. She knew she might die, but she wanted to do the right thing.

I, too, desire to remain strong in my faith, midst less than perfect circumstances in life, so that when I stand before my King, He will find favor in His sight.

Written by
Melody Foster

HSBC Coffeebreak Devotional

"'What do these stones mean?' tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever."
Joshua 3:6-7 NIV

Memories... memories of happy times, new places or adventures, accomplishments... we work hard at making and holding onto good memories. We take lots of photographs or video footage; we buy souvenirs; we relive and retell those memories at family gatherings; we want to make sure that we don't forget.

One summer I was attempting to "make memories" with our grandchildren. One of the projects we worked on was making concrete garden stepping stones, where the grandchildren were able to make handprints and footprints in and write their name and date. They expressed how much fun it would be to place their hands and feet in the prints the next time they came to visit and see how much they had grown.

As I was reading the book of Joshua and was reminded of God's miraculous hand in providing for and protecting His people, even to the point of making the waters of the Jordan River stop while the Israelites crossed over, I was encouraged to trust Him more. God told these people to erect a stone monument there so that when future generations, who hadn't been a part of this journey, came by, they would see these stones and ask why they were there or what they meant. God wanted a memento placed there to cause people to relive and retell the story of His goodness because He knew this would be encouraging and cause others to trust Him more, too.

As I pondered this, I was faced with the question, "Do my mementos remind me of worldly things or do they remind me of how great and mighty God is?" Do I possess anything that would cause one of my grandchildren to ask, "Grandma, what does this mean?" giving me the opportunity to tell them about an event in my life where God's hand was very evident. I have been challenged by that question and desire to make a point of saving mementos or building monuments so that when others ask what or why, I can tell them about God's faithfulness and mightiness.

Lord, help me be alert to Your presence and working in my life. This helps me trust You more and as I tell others, they are encouraged to trust You more too. Amen

Written by
Liz Anderson

HSBC Coffeebreak Devotional

"The joy of our heart is ceased; our dance is turned into mourning..."
Lamentations 5:15

Wait a minute, wait a minute, now just hold on here. This is supposed to be an uplifting devotional time, isn't it? Who in their right mind uses a verse from Lamentations to start off a ladies devotion? (I never said I was in my right mind!)

My day started with a downer, and basically went downhill from there...and my "scheduled" devotional reading? It was from the book of Lamentations. Oh goody. A book written by Jeremiah about weeping, sadness...lamenting. Did God really want me to read Lamentations today?

As I read (with a less than a cheery attitude about it), I read of hope and of God's goodness, mixed in with lamenting. In chapter three, I read, "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not." He is divinely compassionate. He is without failure. Ok, that isn't depressing. It's good to know on a day that started off dismal, God loves me and doesn't fail. That felt nourishing.

Reading on, I found "The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore I will hope in Him." Certain things in my life may appear hopeless, but I always have security in Him. Verses twenty-five and twenty-six say, "The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord." Ok - the word wait isn't my favorite...no matter how you spell it (wait or weight!). I take assurance, however, in knowing God's Word tells me God is good to those who wait and seek. Hearing Jeremiah say in verse fifty-seven, "Thou drewest near in the day that I called upon thee; thou sadist, 'Fear Not.'" soothed me. I needed to call on the Lord. He is there for me, drawing near to me as I call out to Him.

On those days when sadness feels overwhelming or when losses seem to face me at every turn, I can lament...but not without hope. Psalm 30:11 tells how the Lord helps us turn mourning into dancing. Psalm 31: 24 says, "Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord."

Even reading Lamentations turned out to be just what I needed on a day I was sure reading that book was not what I needed. Thank You, Lord, for knowing and meeting my needs.

Written by
Melody Foster