Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Real change...

Esther 9

Well, I'm thinking this morning about I was told in school lots of years ago. Whenever an election came around we were told that "one person can make a difference." "One person can bring about change." I suppose I believed it but it sure is hard to see that on the political scene. Ted Kennedy just passed away and lots of nice things were said about him, but did that one man really bring about any significant change to the system? To our lives? President Bush made some changes... President Obama ran his campaign on "change" but are any of those changes really going to make any drastic or lasting change to our lives? Will my life be changed by what's going on in Washington?

Esther, was probably one of the first real political "change agents." Her guts, determination and willingness to (literally) risk her life for her people brought about significant and lasting change to the lives of the Jews in the kingdom of Media/Persia.

But here's the difference I suppose. First she did not set out to save her people. She did not seek public office or stand on a "platform" of reform. She simply followed a plan that was marked out for her before she was born. And when it came time she stepped into that role and did what had to be done. It's a thing called humility. She didn't seek the spotlight and was scared to take a stand but, as Mordecai said, "she was born for such a time as this." Secondly, when you recognize that you are just playing a part in a much bigger show it takes some of the pressure off. She was not the savior, she was not the star, she was just playing her part. Fulfilling her role. She recognized that God was the star and that she was just filling a role. All she had to do was enter the stage at the right time, say her lines and get off. That is liberating!

Far to many politicians today think they are the star of the show! But their not. So many think that they bring about change or that they are "change agents" but their not. Real change is life change. And that's the business of God through his son Jesus. To change your life you have to start with the inside, not the food you eat or the medical care you get or the school you go to but the condition of your heart. When the heart is changed, the mind is changed the body (what you do and how you do it, what you think and how it comes out of your mouth) follows.

That's lasting change. that's life change and there's only One who can bring that kind of change about. His Name is Jesus. He's the star of this show.

No comments: