“Haman went out that day happy and in high spirits. But when he saw Mordecai at the king’s gate and observed that he neither rose nor showed fear in his presence, he was filled with rage against Mordecai.” Est. 5:9
What a quick change in disposition … happy and high spirits now changed to a spirit of rage in a moments time! Such a dramatic and swift change should cause us to ask, “What? Why such volatility? Where was his heart centered in the first place? How could Haman let another person have such mastery over his emotions? ...”
Isaiah shares, “You (God) will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You.” Is. 26:3. For when our mind is steadfast upon the Lord, (meaning we are leaning our whole weight into Him, being sustained by Him, resting fully in Him), God promises us perfect peace (complete soundness, tranquility, contentment with God, with our human relationships, and with our bodies). Pretty cool promise, huh?!
Well, if this is true (God keeping us in perfect peace when we trust, lean and yield ourselves wholly to Him), what must have transpired with Haman in the Book of Ester?
We can safely deduce that Haman did not have a trusting, intimate, yielded relationship with the living God, but instead chose to lean to his own understanding (the opposite of Prov. 3:5). Haman tragically chose to listen to his jealous flesh and allowed another person to become an obsessive master over him. Hence, when Mordecai became Haman’s obsession (instead of God), things spiraled downward rather quickly. So swift in fact, that Haman ended up losing ALL that he had ever desired (including his life) to the very man he detested the most on this earth.
In the end, Haman received the exact opposite of his wishes and aspirations.
God profoundly desires to keep each of us in His perfect peace…complete soundness, tranquility, and contentment with God Himself (child-like simplistic trusting faith), with our human relationships (like our spouse, friends, work associates, teammates, relatives, etc.), and with our own bodies (no more anxiety, fretting or worry which in turn destroy us mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually).
Additionally, if this is true, why do you and I choose to snub this promise to us and instead choose to follow the ‘Haman paradigm’ in areas of our lives?
Could it be that we truly don’t trust God? ~ That deep down you and I think we know best? ~That we are demanding an answer NOW, and God’s timeframe is different? ~ That we have grown accustomed to worrying, believing that somehow our fretting will produce a more positive outcome? ~That at the core of our being we are deeply prideful, independent, rebellious souls in desperate need of a Savior…but we don’t think we are?
So here’s the question: Who or what is causing you angst today? Who or what are you choosing to have mastery over you that is not God? And the next question is …………….. WHY???
Today, let’s commit to place all our weight in Christ’s hands, and lean on Him with wholehearted devotion…even when things or people in our lives don’t make sense and hurt our hearts.
God bless you!
Shaun and Betsy
