A Fearful Queen

In a recent Bible study I was reminded again of the Old Testament story of Queen Esther. When faced with the choice to reveal her real identity and go to the king to protect her people, she was afraid. After all, anyone who went before the king without being summoned could be put to death, and it had been thirty days since he’d last sent for her. She knew her life stood in the hands of a king’s whim. Mordecai’s reminder that “who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this,” helped her to gather her courage.  For three days she prayed, fasted and called her people to do the same. In spite of her fear, she stood before the king to beg him for the lives of her people. God did intervene for Esther and the Jewish people because of her obedience.

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The Old Pink Robe Ain’t What She Used to Be

Years ago my mom bought a pink chenille robe for a hundred dollars. It was a special robe – floor length, pockets and an attached belt – everything she had been searching for in a robe. For ten years she’s worn the robe faithfully. Cuddled up on the couch, down the sidewalk to grab the paper, standing out on the deck to take the dog out, in a suitcase from Georgia to Texas and back several times – that robe has seen a few miles. However, like everything else in life, over time the robe is beginning to look a little worn. Years of washing and wearing have taken a toll on the precious pink garment. The chenille is worn out in places, leaving thin patches of fabric polka-dotting the robe. The color has faded to a pale shade of baby pink. The shawl collar is limp and the coffee and ice cream stains that dribble the front of the robe don’t add anything to its already humble state. 

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Wrinkled Music

The young man scuffed the toes of his laceless shoes. He stared at the twelve-inch squares of linoleum on the floor of the music department’s practice room.

“Yeah, I’m not what you’d call prepared for today’s lesson.”

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Skin Deep

I had something wrong in my body. Nobody knew exactly what it was or why it was causing these particular oddities to occur. Even after the routine test, examinations, lab work, surgical consults, we still had no conclusive evidence. Our next step was to surgically remove the suspected tissue for examination and testing. After the results from the surgery came back, there was still no conclusive answer to the cause of the problem.

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Under Watchful Eyes

Recently my husband, son and I were driving down a long country road to a conference, followed the entire time by a brown car. As we reached the outskirts of town, we decided to stop for gas. After filling up, we got back on the road but noticed police lights, sirens, and slow traffic up ahead. As we crept up to pass, we noticed the car that had followed us was in a head-on crash, and the driver was being placed on a stretcher. As we passed the scene we realized that it could have been us in the accident if we had not stopped for gas. 

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