From Sadness to Celebration

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Esther 8:11-17

TO CHEW ON: "In every province and in every city to which the edict of the king came, there was joy and gladness among the Jews, with feasting and celebrating..." Esther 8:17

Quickly things turned around in Susa. Haman was gone. When Esther told the king that Mordecai was her cousin, he gave Mordecai the job Haman had before. But the king’s law still stood. The Jews were still in danger.


Again Esther went to the king. “Please spare the life of my people,” she pleaded.

“My law from before can’t be overturned,” the king told her. “But you can write another one.”

So Mordecai called together the secretaries. They wrote a new command. It said that the Jewish people could now fight back to defend themselves from anyone who attacked them. Couriers on horses raced to the farthest parts of the land to post the new law.


When the people of Susa heard the news, there was great happiness. On the day that Haman had picked for the slaughter, Jews everywhere fought against their attackers and were successful. Now instead of that day being a day of death and weeping, it became a day of feasting and celebrating.

I’m sure Esther and Mordecai wondered, on those first grim days after Haman passed his law, if they would ever feel like smiling again. But with God’s help everything changed. Instead of tears, a big celebration ended the story.

We too may be in sad times. We may wonder if and how things will ever get better. Like Esther and Mordecai, let’s pray to God about our problems. The God of Esther and Mordecai is our God too. He can still turn sadness into a celebration!

PRAYER: Dear God, I bring my problem of __________ to You. Please change my sadness into celebration. Amen.

MORE: Purim
Every year after that the Jews celebrated the day when God saved them from their enemies through Queen Esther. They called it the Feast of Purim.

The Jewish people still celebrate the Feast of Purim today. Here are some things they do on that day:



1. They read the story of Esther from the Hegillah (the Scroll). They cheer whenever Esther’s name is mentioned, boo at Haman’s name and wave graggers or noisemakers. They also act out the story in plays.


2. They wear costumes, disguises and masks to remind them of how Esther had to hide the fact that she was Jewish.

3. They send gifts to each other and the poor. They also invite people to join them in a special Purim meal.

4. They make special food. One treat is called Hamantaschen (Haman’s Hat). It is a three-cornered pastry filled with poppy seeds or prunes.

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Praise!

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Psalm 150:1-6

TO CHEW ON: "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord." Psalm 150:6

To help the people celebrate, David and other song writers wrote praise psalms. One of them is Psalm 150. We learn many things about praising God from this psalm.

We learn that praise can sound from many places. It can come from a sanctuary or a church. It can also come from nature, like the “mighty heavens,” those beautiful stars, planets, the sun and the moon that God made. Can you think of more places?

The planets Saturn and Jupiter

We learn that we praise God for many reasons. We may praise God for His “acts of power.” These could be miracles that God has done.

People in Bible times would think of things like how God sent plagues on the Egyptians so the Israelites could go free, or dried up the Jordan River so they could cross.

We can praise God for these things too. But we can also praise God for the mighty acts that God has done for people in our time. Perhaps you’ve heard stories of how God has healed people, or helped them escape from dangerous situations, or sent someone to rescue them just in time. Maybe God has done something like that for you. This is a great reason to praise God.

We also praise God for His “surpassing greatness.” This is praise to Him just because of who He is – all knowing, all powerful, all seeing, merciful, just, kind, eternal. When we think of God – how big and amazing He is – we can’t help but praise Him.

This Psalm also helps us learn ways to praise God. We can sing, dance and play musical instruments. Do you praise God like that? The people in Bible times played many instruments.



List the instruments that the writer mentions in Psalm 150:2-4.

1. ______

Have you seen any of those? Circle the ones you know.

Now add to the list instruments that people in your church play to worship God.

Finally, we learn who should praise God. Who? (Psalm 150:6)
2. _______ Does that include you?

PRAYER: "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord! Amen"

MORE: Make a Tambourine
One of the musical instruments in Psalm 150 is a tambourine. Make a tambourine of your own.

What you need:
2 paper plates; crayons or paints, stapler, dried beans

What to do:
1. Decorate the bottom of both paper plates with the crayons or paints.
2. Place one plate, decorated side down, on a work surface.
3. Place the other plate, decorated side up, on top of the first plate.
4. Staple the plates together around the rim, leaving a 4-inch space.
5. Slip a handful of beans into the space between the two plates.
6. Finish stapling the plates together, making sure there are no spaces where beans can escape.

Play your tambourine:
Put on your favorite praise CD and join in the praise with your tambourine.

Answers


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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.



Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Celebrate!

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Chronicles 15:25-16:3

TO CHEW ON: "So all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with shouts, with the sounding of rams’ horns and trumpets, and of cymbals, and the playing of lyres and harps." 1 Chronicles 15:28

For three months the ark was in the home of Obed-Edom. In that time, everyone noticed how God was blessing him. One day David decided to try to bring the ark back to Jerusalem again.

He arrived at the house of Obed-Edom with a great crowd of people. There were Levites, priests, singers and musicians dressed in beautiful robes of fine linen. There were army commanders. And there were many ordinary people.

This time the Levites lifted the ark onto their shoulders and carried it the way God had told them. As they began their walk to Jerusalem, the priests sacrificed to God. Then the singers sang and the instruments played.

The closer they got to the city, the more people joined the happy parade. Finally a great throng of happy, singing, celebrating people entered Jerusalem. But no one celebrated harder than David. He danced and leaped and spun in joy and praise to God that the ark was finally returning to Jerusalem.

"David Brings the Ark to Jerusalem"
Original oil painting ©1993 by Darlene Slavujac Thau (used with artist's permission)

The Levites brought the ark to the tent David had made for it. After they sacrificed more offerings, David sent everyone home with loaves of bread, and cakes of dates and raisins.

PRAYER: Dear God, help me to celebrate You like David did. Amen.

MORE: We celebrate
1. What is your favorite celebration of the year? What fun things do you do on that day?


2. What things do you celebrate in church? Which is your favorite of the church celebrations and what makes it special?

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.


Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

God's Parties

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Leviticus 23:1-8

TO CHEW ON: "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.' ” Leviticus 23:2

What do you do on special days? Match the holiday with an activity that may happen then:



God also gave the Israelites special days to celebrate. They were called feasts. In some ways they were a lot like our holidays. The Israelites were to take the day off work and they often ate special food.

But these feasts were also different. Most of our celebrations are only a day or a weekend long. Some of the Israelites' feasts lasted a whole week or longer. And while our celebrations are often all about us – what gifts we’ll get, what we’ll eat, how much fun we’ll have – the Israelites’ holidays helped them focus on God.

Some of them, like the Passover, helped them remember how God had helped in the past. Others, like the Feast of First fruits, were times they gave God the first things they harvested. This reminded them that they depended on God now. In fact, every one of their holidays had something to do with God and their friendship with Him.

"Songs of Joy" by James Tissot

The feasts and holidays God told the Israelites to celebrate show that God knows our need for a break. But how we use the free time is our choice - and an important one. Do we use days off, like Sunday, only for our own pleasure? Or do we think about God on such days, and spend time getting to know Him better?

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for the variety of holidays through the year. Help me to use these special days in a way that pleases You. Amen.


MORE: Feast List
Complete a list of the feasts or holidays God told the people to celebrate. (In the brackets is the month they would celebrate the feast on our calendar):

- Leviticus 23:3 [1.] __________________ (Once a week all year long)
- Leviticus 23:5 [2.] __________________ (March or April)
- Leviticus 23:5 [3.] __________________ (March or April)
- Leviticus 23:9-14 Feast of First Fruits (April)
- Leviticus 23:15 Feast of Weeks (or Pentecost) and the Harvest Festival (June)
- Leviticus 23:23 Feast of Trumpets (September/October)
- Leviticus 23:27 [4.] _________________ (September/October)
- Leviticus 23:34 [5.] _________________ (September/October)

Answers

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

grumble Grumble GRUMBLE

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Exodus 16:1-12

TO CHEW ON: "The Lord said to Moses, 'I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’ ” - Exodus 16:11-12

Yesterday the Israelites grumbled about no water. Today they are grumbling about not enough food. In fact, they are in such a bad mood, they’re ready to go back to Egypt for just one of those great Egyptian meals!

God heard the people. He told Moses what He would do (Exodus 16:11,12): unscramble the words.
1. In the evening God would send (tmea) __________.
2. In the morning He would rain down (debar) __________.

Gathering manna by James Tissot

The bread God sent the Israelites every morning was called manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey (Exodus 16:31).

Coriander seed

Think about it:
3. What does it mean to grumble?

4. What do you think - did the Israelites grumble too much?
In what other ways could they have told Moses and God what they needed and wanted?

5. How do you get your food?
Is God involved in any way?

Of course you would never grumble about food, would you?

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for supplying my food. Amen.

MORE: A Food Prayer
A prayer of blessing and thanks for the food before or after we eat reminds us that it’s really God whom we should thank for our food.

1. A before- or after-meal prayer for food is called: __________ a] repentance; b] confession; c] grace; d] whining.

2. Write out your favorite food prayer – or make up a new one.

3. Learn some new table graces (mealtime prayers) at this web site.

Answers

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.