Facing reality now is much wiser than later

Scripture Read: Esther 4:1-2 When Mordecai learned all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city and wailed loudly and bitterly. ² He went as far as the king’s gate, for no one was to enter the king’s gate clothed in sackcloth.   

Application: How honest are we about life? Many do all they can to keep any uncomfortable situations or even thoughts far from them. This passage is a great illustration of what many people do in life to avoid the reality that life has. It was against the law for anyone to come before the King with sadness or mourning. The King insulated himself from anything that might make his life uncomfortable. He kept his entire life sanitized from anything in the world that he did not like. All the people around him were pleasant to look at, no handicapped individuals or individuals with birth defects. The whole area was full of people that were there to bring delight to the King. He even had input to him controlled. No one could come before the King unless they had been called. Kings were known for killing the people that brought bad news. They killed the messenger if they didn’t like the message. 

Many of us live this way today. We do all we can to not face the harsh realities of a fallen world. This is one of the reasons Jesus said it was so hard for the rich to be saved. They are not greater sinners than anyone else – but they have so much ability to keep their life in a chosen comfort zone, and keep themselves distracted from the unpleasantness of this world. Many, even lead causes and take comfort in the fact that others are the reason for the problems. They say “we” are polluting the world and destroying it – while their lifestyle uses 10-20 times the world’s resources that any one middle class person does or 100 times more than the average person in a 3^rd world country uses. We all are in danger of doing this in various ways. We avoid dealing with the deaths of people we know because it brings the reality of our own finiteness to the surface. We focus at the crimes or failures of others – which distracts us from owning up to our own failings. Father – teach us from this King – he lived in a make believe world. To live well for at most 100 years and then to spend eternity separated from You is a terrible reality. Give us the courage to be real now and answer life’s most important questions: Why are we here; What is the purpose of life and what will happen to us after our body has ceased? This is reality and can lead us to the best future reality. Thanks Lord!

Meditation Questions: When uncomfortable thoughts enter your mind what do you do with them? How often to you think about y0ur future and consider what it will be? Do you put off dealing with difficult issues or situations? What did you think about the last time you attended a funeral? When someone tells you bad news how do you treat them?