Application: What a sad man Haman was! So full of himself, and controlled by outward circumstances. This is a person that does not have “joy” from within but only emotion from without. His day was going so great because of circumstances he perceived to be in his favor. But the moment those outward circumstances changed he lost all the emotional happiness and was filled with anger. What a roller coaster Lord, and we would be wise to learn from this sad figure of a man. How often do we find ourselves on the same ride?
The amazing thing is that it can go either direction! We can find ourselves on the mountaintop only to receive terrible news that sends us deep into the pit. Or we find ourselves in the pit to then receive something great and now we are flying high in the heavens! After a while of this kind of living we are fried emotionally and just burn out. This is not what You desire for our life Lord. Yet, can we avoid such highs and lows in real life? The answer to that question is multifaceted but still simple. We need to separate the idea of life, i.e. the totality of our existence, from the idea of emotions, i.e. the moments that make up our life. Because emotions are apart of us, we cannot avoid or change the highs and lows or the good and bad that we encounter. We may get a knock on our door, it is the million dollar sweepstakes and we just won! YEA!!! What a high. The doorbell rings again and it is the Tax Man! BOO HOO! We are down! Stuff happens. We need an anchor for our emotions or our highs will be too high and our lows will be too low. Each dip in the ride will be an earth shattering shock. Great for a thrill ride at a theme park but it stinks in life. If, on the other hand our emotions are anchored in the Joy we have of being in a relationship with our Creator – ups and downs will happen, but now they are governed by our knowledge of You Father. We will not be feel subjected to mountains and pits. It is encouraging at least even in the valley of the shadow of death, it is a mere valley, not a terrifying pit of the unknown. Joy is based on You and flows from within – so outward circumstance may affect us but not control us. Father, do not allow us to be like Haman. Let our heart live in joy of the relationship we have with You, then our emotions will be measured by eternity not here and now!
Meditation Questions: When you feel down, is there light in that tunnel? Does your life feel more like “ups and downs” or an adventure with victories and defeats? The last time everything seemed to be going right, then trouble came how hard was it to deal with? What does that show you? The last time you were in a troubled time, then things turned around how relieved did you feel? What does that say? 
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