Month: December 2014

When Haman saw that Mordecai was not bowing down or paying him homage, he was filled with rage. Esther 3:5

The following statistics compiled from the NHTSA and the Auto Vantage auto club show that aggressive driving and road rage are causing serious problems on our roads.
* 66% of traffic fatalities are caused by aggressive driving.
* 37% of aggressive driving incidents involve a firearm.
* Males under the age of 19 are the most likely to exhibit road rage.
* Half of drivers who are on the receiving end of an aggressive behavior, such as horn honking, a rude gesture, or tailgating admit to responding with aggressive behavior themselves.
* Over a seven year period, 218 murders and 12,610 injuries were attributed to road rage.

One frightening statistic worth noting is:
* 2% of drivers admit to trying to run an aggressor off the road!

Cars did not exist in Haman’s time, but it seems that if Haman had owned a car he would have been a good candidate to exhibit “road rage”. Haman enjoyed the power and prestige of his position. He felt that he was important and deserved to have others bow down and worship him. When Mordecai would not bow down and pay homage, it enraged Haman. His anger was not only directed toward Mordecai, but toward all Jews and what they stood for – their dedication to the one true God who has complete authority and is the only One worthy of praise and worship. Haman must have seen himself as a god that deserved to be worshiped.

Challenge: Do you get angry while driving? Have you been a victim of “road rage”? Do you have an anger issue? Pray and ask God to help you stay calm, cool, and collected when faced with stressful situations or with someone who is exhibiting “road rage”. Remember you are a representative of the One True God.

The members of the royal staff at the King’s Gate asked Mordecai, “Why are you disobeying the king’s command?” When they had warned him day after day and he still would not listen to them, they told Haman to see if Mordecai’s actions would be tolerated, since he had told them he was a Jew. Esther 3:3-4 HCSB

In general all four of my children enjoyed being together as children and even today I am blessed that my adult children still enjoy getting together to spend time on vacation or to celebrate a birthday. There were times as young children that they seemed to enjoy getting the other one in trouble. Sometimes one of the them would “tattle” or “tell” on one of the others in hopes of getting the other sibling in trouble. At times this was a ploy to divert my attention to one of the other children in an effort that he or she could get the other child in trouble and find favor with me.

That is exactly what the royal staff was doing. They ran to Haman to “tattle” on Mordecai. They told Haman what Mordecai was doing with the hope of getting him in trouble and finding favor with Haman. Being a “tattletale” is not a becoming characteristic and usually stems from selfish attitudes and the desire to be seen as supportive of someone. The royal family may not have liked bowing to Haman, therefore did not like the fact that Mordecai was getting away with disobeying the king’s order. They decided to point out that Mordecai was not following the king’s command; furthermore they wanted Haman to know that Mordecai was a Jew.

Challenge: Have you been a tattletale in an effort to get someone in trouble? Evaluate your personal desires and ambitions. Think of others more highly than yourself. Focus on what would be best for others instead of what is best for you, then seek to do what would benefit other people.

After all this took place, King Ahaerus honored Haman, son of Hammedatha the Agagite. He promoted him in rank and gave him a higher position than all the other officials. The entire royal staff at the King’s Gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, because the king had commanded this to be done for him. But Mordecai would not bow down or pay homage. Esther 3:1-2 HCSB

Listverse.com reports: A 62-year-old homeless woman from Calgary, Canada found a purse stuffed with over $10,000 in cash, and even though she was living at the local YWCA shelter at the time, she chose to turn it in. “It never crossed my mind to keep the money,” she said. “It’s not mine to keep.” There are many stories of people who have chosen to do what it right even though it cost them in some way.

Mordecai decided to do what was right, even if it cost him his life. He evaluated the risk and had the courage to take a stand against the pressure to bow down and worship Haman. Mordecai was a Jew and He knew it was wrong to bow down and worship anyone or anything other than the one true God. It would have been easy to rationalize that he could bow down but not really worship Haman, but he decided to go against the crowd and what was popular to follow God. Mordecai had faith in God and was determined he would not bow down and worship Haman.

Challenge: Choose to do what is right. Often doing what is right is not the most popular thing to do. You will be in the minority. Pray for strength and courage as you stand up to the pressure of the world to follow God’s plan and will for your life.