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For Such a Time as This

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The Question is: What Are You Going to Do About It?

It’s Independence Day 2024. This is when we in America celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence. 

On July 4, 1776, it was adopted unanimously by the 56 delegates who later became known as the nation’s founding fathers. This declaration explains to the world why the Thirteen Colonies regarded themselves as independent, sovereign states no longer subject to British rule. 

This Declaration has become one of the most circulated, reprinted, and influential documents in world history. It has proven an influential and globally impactful statement on human rights, particularly its second sentence:  

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”  

The signing of the Declaration came at a cost.

“And, for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.” 

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons in the revolutionary army, another had two sons captured. Nine of the fifty-six fought and died from wounds or hardships resulting from the Revolutionary War. 

Standing up for what’s right requires bravery and comes with risk. 

We see this same kind of bravery and risk in the Bible in the book of Esther. This book shows us how God works through people in a fallen world who are willing to step out bravely. 

Esther’s uncle, Mordecai, learns that Haman–King Xerxes second in command–plotted to kill all the Jews in Persia. This included Mordecai and Esther who is queen.  

Mordecai tells Esther that she needs to talk to the king about this. There’s a big risk to this. If she goes to the king without being invited, the king might have her killed. 

In Esther 4:10-14 Mordecai tells her: 

“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?” 

Esther and Mordecai were both brave and took risks. Mordecai wouldn’t bow to Haman. Esther went to the king with her request. Both things worked out. Both Mordecai and Esther did things outside their comfort zones. 

We’re all called for such a time as this. 

Our callings may not be as big as the Founding Fathers, Mordecai, or Esther, but we’ve been called. It’s up to us to be aware of our calling and do something.  

The question is…what are you going to do about it? 

Have a great Independence Day! 

We Should Be Willing to Take a Risk Because it’s the Right Thing to Do

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It’s All About Believing in the Right Thing and Having Faith

Do places have a memory?

Have you ever felt connected to a place through memories. These could be your memories or others.

I have this kind of connection at home. The house I live in was built in 1916 by my great grandfather. My grandmother on my mom’s side of the family grew up in this house. Then my mother and her sisters grew up here. Now I live there and have raised my family in this house.

To say that I have memories here is an understatement. I have childhood memories of Christmases, Sunday evening suppers, 4th of July fireworks, butchering chickens, putting hay in the barn and on and on. In discussions with my mom and aunts, I’ve heard stories of their memories, too.

All these memories, both heard and lived, have played a part in my feelings for this farm. It has been a part of making me who I am. It’s more than that…it is a part of who I am.

I can see my grandmother and mother running through the house in bare feet on the same floors that I walk on every day.

Last Sunday was Palm Sunday. This commemorates Jesus’s walking into Jerusalem and the people waving palm branches in greeting.

 On His way to Jerusalem, He walked over the Mount of Olives. Like my house holds memories for me, the Mount of Olives held memories for the Jews.

As Jesus walked over there, He would have seen King David as he was fleeing his son Absalom. He would have seen Zacharia as he prophesied. He would have seen all the faces of the people to be the first to be raised from the dead buried in the cemetery there on the Mount of Olives.

Memories are both good and bad. It’s up to us to decide which ones we are going to focus on.

Paul Veneto is a retired flight attendant who worked out of Logan International Airport. On Sept 10, he landed back home in Boston. The next day was off. That’s when United Flight 175, the flight he was an attendant on, flew into the World Trade Center.

He knew the people who were working on that flight. They were his friends and coworkers. This was hard for Paul, he could have been on that plane…he should have been on that plane. He felt guilty about it. Dealing with this Veneto fell into drug addiction.

After being off opioids for six years, in 2015 he decided he would walk the 220 miles from Boston to ground zero pushing a beverage cart to honor the memory of his coworkers and bring attention to them.

This is focusing on the good memories.

We need to remember that the things we do every day will be memories for us and others.

Sometimes this means making difficult and unpopular choices. It can be risky to do the right thing. As we approach Easter, we need to remember what Jesus did for us. He knew the price. He knew that it was risky, but He did it anyway…because it was the right thing to do.

When we are faced with scary situations, we need to remember Jesus and the sacrifice He made for us. Having faith in Him can give us the courage we need to do the scary things in life.