Tim Hatch on Sunday Service 55:50

Let us pray. Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you. 1 Peter 5, 7 Dear God, thank you for listening to me and allowing me to lean on you. Thank you for your support and letting me seek shelter in your arms. Some days I find myself anxious about the uncertainties that lie ahead. I look for answers and others' options, or by searching online, or try to ease my discomfort using the waiting seasons.

Father, help me to lean on you and embrace the uncertainties, because the pain will only make me stronger. I know that you have an extraordinary plan for my life, and I can't wait for it to unfold. Amen. Thank you for listening to today's daily prayer. For more inspiration and an incredible message from our feature pastor, stay tuned to Pray.com's Sunday service.

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Hi, my name is Tim Hatch. Welcome to Tim Hatch Live on Pray.com. I'm so glad that you have tuned in. Now, here's the deal. I'm the pastor of seven churches, and I also authored two books and two mini books. I want to get one of those mini books into your hand for free. So go over to TimHatchLive.com and subscribe to our mailing list, and we will send you my new mini book, Five Words of Wisdom for Godly Living, right now. Thanks for taking the time to check out the content, and I pray it blesses your life.

God wants to do things not just for you, but through you. Touch lives through you. Change the world around you. Impact people beyond you and make your life a testimony so that people can come to Jesus because you were involved in their life. Prophets part four. I want to talk to you on the subject of it's all part of the plan.

It's all part of the plan. Can you say that title with me on the count of three? But you got to emphasize the word the. So one, two, three. It's all part of God's got a plan. Somebody say God's got a plan. Oh, touch your neighbor and say he's got a plan. Touch your neighbor. Come on. Let's talk to each other. Let's have a conversation. This isn't a lecture. This is a preach.

And we're going to talk together. And I'm going to go to Esther chapter 6 and we're going to get to the last of this book. And you're going to be amazed. I love this passage. I love this book. I've enjoyed preaching it. Are you enjoying the messages? Are you enjoying this series? And I hope it's instilling faith in you and you are getting ready for God to do something wonderful through your life. Okay. So here's the message idea, the big idea of the series. Providence means God is working no matter what the world is doing.

Providence means God is working no matter what the world is doing. But I thought to myself, today we gotta get personal. Personal. This is gonna be for you. How does God's providence and what he does apply to you? Well, if you're in Christ, there are four words that I want you to add to this definition. Four words. So here's the new definition I want you to leave this series with. Write this down. Providence means that God is working for me personally.

Now doesn't that sound better? It's about, it's also including you. God is working for you. Somebody say, "For me."

But I need someone here today to take another step forward in faith. I need you to leap forward in faith into a brand new dimension. And don't stay in the for me kind of faith. It's not enough. It's not what God wants. It's not what he's up to. It's not what the scriptures bear witness to. It is not ultimately just for you faith. I need you to move into through you faith.

God wants to do things not just for you, but through you. Touch lives through you. Change the world around you. Impact people beyond you and make your life a testimony so that people can come to Jesus because you were involved in their life. See, this is where a lot of Christians are. They're for me. I need God to fix things. I need God to, where is he? I need this. I need that. And that's wonderful. But ultimately, true faith is to believe that it's not really about you. You're not the center of the story.

And God has some plans. I don't know if you know, He's got some plans for the world. And He's got you on assignment. This is going to save some people today. It's going to save a lot of people from a syndrome I like to call the "Why me?" syndrome. Have you heard of the "Why me?" syndrome? You know, it's not medically prescribed or diagnosed. It's spiritually diagnosed. It's the "Why me? Why is this happening? Why? Oh God, why?"

Why am I related to these people, Lord? Why do I have to work with these losers, Lord? Why do I have to live here and not there? Why am I this age and not that age? Why can't I do this? Why has this happened to me? Has anybody had a why me syndrome season in your life? Come on, be honest today. It's all right to be honest in church. Confession is good for the soul.

I've had a lot of why me sessions. I have. I've had a lot of ask my wife. She'll tell you, oh yeah, he's why me all the time, man. You gotta watch out for this. You gotta watch out for why me. Here's what's gonna set you free from why me. When you realize that it's not about you. There's something on the other side of your misery. There's something on the other side of your trial. There's something on the other side of your challenges, on your setbacks, that God's story in your life is not done yet.

So that you can start looking at your life and say, wait a second. You are not an aggravation. You are an assignment. That husband of yours, ladies, he's not an aggravation. He's an assignment. He's there to help you become a more patient and loving and kind and caring woman.

And husbands, that wife for you is not just there to cook and clean and bury your children or go to work now. We're in the modern world. Go to work and earn a living for the house or whatever it is that she does. That's not what she's there for. She's there to help you become what God wants you to become so that you can do what God wants you to do. And other people can be blessed through your story. You can look at that boss tomorrow. You can go right up to him and don't say it out loud, but just say, you're my assignment, yes. Yes.

God has you in my life. You're challenging me. You're changing me. I know that God's working all things together for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purposes. It's not why me. It's about Jesus. Amen. And so this is what this message is about. And we are in Esther chapter 5. Let's stand together for the reading of the last few verses of Esther chapter 5. Remember that Esther has brought Haman, the hateful enemy of the Jews, and King Xerxes, or Ahasuerus,

to a banquet. And she's trying to intervene to save the Jews from annihilation. Haman hates the Jews. He wants to annihilate them. There's an edict in place. They're going to be annihilated. It's about a year away. And so she throws a party. Mordecai, her cousin, has instigated this whole thing. You've got to step up. You've come to the kingdom for such a time as this. You've got to say something because God's going to work regardless of whether or not you do it. But you've got to be part of it. So she goes and she finally gets the gumption to do the bare minimum. She invites Haman in.

and King Xerxes to a banquet. And then this is what's happened. This is the end of the first banquet. At the first banquet, she gets enough gumption to ask them to come to a second banquet the next night. So we are between the first banquet and the second banquet. Follow? Okay, so here's verse 12.

Then Haman said, even Queen Esther, this is Haman, he goes home from the breakaway. Even Queen Esther, let no one but me come with the king to the feast she prepared. And tomorrow also I am invited by her together with the king. Yet all this is worth nothing to me, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate.

This is God's Word. Let's pray together. Father, I ask in Jesus' name that our hearts will be open and our ears will be open and our minds will be receptive to hear your voice, to know your truth, to receive your Word.

May your kingdom come. May your will be done. Let the words in my mouth, the meditation of all of our hearts be pleasing in your sight. And help us, O God, to see Jesus. Him and Him only. In His mighty name we pray. And everybody said? Amen. God bless you. Have a seat. So Esther chapter 5 ends. And it looks very dark. Somebody say dark. Life looks dark.

Maybe in your world right now, it just looks darker than ever. Maybe for some of you, you are looking at your world and saying, "Well, I can't get much darker than this." And I want you to realize that that's exactly where the Jews were in Esther chapter 5. They're facing extinction, legalized persecution, legalized murder of all of them. On top of which, their last best effort to change things is a beauty queen winner

having a party with her husband and the guy who instigated the whole mess. And this is a very dark moment. But what you're going to see in Exeter chapter 6 is that things can change quickly. And I'm going to walk through the rest of the book with you. We're going to put a lot of the verses on the screen because this story is iconic and ironic at the same time. There are some great moments of God's deliverance in the Bible. Amen?

I mean, the Red Sea being parted, and then Pharaoh chasing down the Israelites into the sea, and then the sea closing in on him. I remember the kid in elementary school who stepped up and said, oh, no, no, I believe that. And the elementary school teacher said, oh, how can God split a sea? He didn't really split a sea. It was just a very shallow sea. And they just walked through the very shallow sea. And then the kid was so wise, he said, well, then how does, what a great miracle that God drowned Pharaoh's army in a shallow sea.

It's a great story, right? That God delivered them. And the kicker was that Pharaoh's army ended in the bottom of that sea. That's a great story. Amen? Or Daniel in the lion's den. And he's petting lions all night. The lions would be eating him otherwise. But the angels come and shut the lion's mouth. And so there's David in the lion's den just

petting the lion. It would have been amazing to be a fly on the wall in the midst of that moment. There's been some great deliverances, but this one, this deliverance is amazing. Let's take a look at how this goes down. So Haman has just built a gallows 75 feet high in his backyard to hang his hateful enemy Mordecai. Chapter 6, verse 1. On that night, if you've got your Bible, circle night, because here's what I want you to hear.

God does amazing things in nighttime. Some of you are in the darkness right now and you don't even think that God can work. He works his best stuff at night. He is not sleeping. He doesn't sleep. You sleep. He goes to work. Amen, somebody.

And it was nighttime. And the smallest thing happens. Look what it says. On that night, the king could not sleep. And he gave orders to bring the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the king. And it was found written how Mordecai had told Bithana and Teresh, two of the king's eunuchs who guarded the thresholds,

and who had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. So this is an amazing start to this chapter and this moment. The whole thing starts with something inconspicuous. Royal insomnia. The king can't sleep. And I want you to pay attention to that because it reminds me, and I want to tell you, that you've got to realize that God can use even the little things in your life. Even a sleepless night can be a gift from God.

And this guy can't sleep. That's it. And so the funny thing is that he says, okay, I need to fall asleep. And there was no, you know, NyQuil back then. There was no melatonin. So he goes, let me find the most boring thing that I can think of and have somebody read it back to me. Oh yeah, read me back the record of my reign. So he goes, the Chronicles of the King. Boring was his reign that to hear his story retold put him to sleep.

That's amazing, right? So they come and they bring the chronicles and it says this, verse 3. I'm sorry. It just so happened that the very page that was opened in the king's chronicles was the moment when Mordecai, this is back in Esther chapter 2, was the moment when Mordecai saved the king's life. And the king says, well, what's been done? Look what it says, verse 3. And the king said, what honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this? And the king's young men said, nothing has been done for him.

Now this is a very true fact about the Persian Empire. The kings in the Persian Empire loved to reward loyal subjects who protected the king. And so he comes to the sense that Mordecai, who saved his life, did not get honored. He did honor Haman. And Haman used his honor to hate on the Jews. So now look what it says in verse 4. And the king said,

Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the king's palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for him. And the king's young men told him, Haman is there standing in the court. And the king said to him, let him come in. Oh, I love this moment.

Here you have the enemy of the king, the enemy of the Jews, is coming into the presence of the king with the intention to kill Mordecai. At the same time, the king is thinking about ways to bless Mordecai. Do you understand that this story is about you?

It really is. It's talking about our reality in Christ Jesus. Here's what you need to understand. You are living in a spiritual fight. You are living in a battle between God and the devil. The devil is coming for you. He wants to steal, kill, and destroy you. That's what Haman represents. He wants to annihilate you. He wants to destroy you. He wants to rob you of your family, rob you of your peace, rob you of your joy. And he's got plans. He's got schemes. He's got gallows. He wants to hang you on. And he's coming into God's presence every day.

The Bible says he's the accuser of the brother. But do you understand, church? Do you know that at the same time the devil wants to come in and attack you, that you've got a father in heaven who is planning to bless you? He wants to do you good. He wants to reward you. And you've got to understand something. Yes, you will be set back. Yes, you will be attacked. But greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. This is why Paul said, if God be for us, who can be against us?

Some of you got to look at your problems. You got to say, wait a second. This is a spiritual fight. This is a spiritual struggle. I got to step up my game. I got to realize that, yeah, the devil will throw his best aim, his best stuff at me, but the Lord is still looking to bless me. That's this moment. So Mordecai is hanging in the balance. Verse 6, it says, Haman comes in and the king said to him, what should be done? Notice that there's no names mentioned here. What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honor? And Haman said to himself, who?

who would the king delight to honor more than me? Now that is just pride, friend. And there's a verse in the Bible that says, pride comes before a fall. And this guy epitomizes that verse so well in this moment.

Haman, who wants to kill Mordecai, thinks, oh, the king just wants to do me honor. So verse 7 to 9, he's just, he just unloads on what he wants. Verse 7. And Haman said to the king, For the man whom the king delights to honor, let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse that the king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown is set. And let the robes and the horse be handed over to one of the king's most noble officials. Remember that. One of the king's most noble officials.

Let them dress the man whom the king delights to honor, and let them lead him on the horse through the square of the city, proclaiming before him, Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor. Now let's just stop here for a second and just take a look at all the things that Haman thinks he's going to get for himself. This guy is second in command of the kingdom. He is at the highest place you can get other than the king. He's probably got riches. He's probably got houses. He's probably got lands. He's probably got cattle and sheep and oxen. I mean, he's blessed. He's extraordinarily prosperous. But it wasn't enough.

He wanted people's praise. Oh, what a trap that is for so many people. And this is Haman's spirit. This is what the devil wanted, by the way, in heaven before he fell from earth. The Bible says that Lucifer was one of the archangels. Gabriel, Michael, Lucifer. He was one of the archangels in heaven with God. And he wanted to be in God's place. He wanted the praise. He wanted the honor. He wanted the authority. He wanted the esteem that

was only due to God. And it cost him his place and his authority. And God cast him out of heaven and down to this earth. And ever since then, he's been trying to feed so many humans the lie that if enough people love you, you'll feel complete. And it's never enough. It's never enough. Watch out for the trap of getting people's approval. It'll rob you of your joy. It'll rob you of your life. It'll rob you of your ability to live.

So he's like, yeah, just give me all this stuff. And he's like, oh, I want all this praise. And so this is the best part. Here's the best verse in the whole story. The king, verse 10, said to Haman, hurry, take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew who sits at the king's gate. Leave nothing out that you have mentioned. You said it, now you do it, but you do it for Mordecai. You gotta be, I mean, if I could have been a fly on the wall there, just to see Haman's face go, what? What?

So he has to do it. Verse 13 and verse 11. So Haman took the robes and the horse and he dressed Mordecai, led him through the squares of the city, proclaiming for him, thus, and this is how I see it going down. Mordecai is on the horse and I see Haman in front of him going, thus shall it be done to

the man and the king delights to honor. Then Mordecai returned to the king's gate, but Haman hurried to his house, mourning with his head covered. And now he goes home and he sulks because this guy loves to unload on everybody. And verse 13 says he comes home to his wife Jerush and all his friends and he told them everything that happened to him. Then his wise men and his wife Jerush said to him, if Mordecai, whom you have begun to follow,

is of the Jewish people. You will not overcome him, but you will surely fall before him. I just want you to look at something there. It says, before whom you have begun to fall. Do you understand, Christian? Do you know that the battle for your spiritual victory was already sealed at the cross and the empty grave 2,000 years ago? The devil may taunt you. He may tell you you're a loser. He may tell you lies. He may whisper in your ear, but all you got to do is remind him

that he's a loser in waiting, and the victory is coming to you in the end with Jesus Christ. That's how it goes. He has begun to fall, and the best is coming for you, Christian. So his wife says, yeah, this is it. It's over for you. And look at this verse 14. This is the movement of the story. While they were still talking to him, the king's eunuchs arrived and hurried to bring Haman to the feast that Esther had prepared. And this is the feast where she's finally going to tell the king what's going on with this guy Haman.

So that's chapter 6. Let's look at chapter 7. So the king and Haman went to the feast with Queen Esther. And on the second day of the feast, as they were drinking wine after the feast, the king said to Esther, what is your wish? I wonder if she waited for the wine to get really heavy in his body. You say, hey, Esther, what do you want? I'll give you half the king. That's why it pays to fast in a world of feasting right there. Amen, somebody. Verse 3, then Queen Esther answered. This is the shot heard around the world. She finally does it.

She finally says something that saves the Jews. Queen Esther answered, "If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be granted me for my wish and for my people, my request, for we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be killed, to be annihilated. If we had been sold as slaves, I wouldn't have bothered you because it's not worthy of the king's discomfort." "We're gonna be killed, king. My people, me, your wife."

And verse 5, he says, "Who is he and where is he who has dared to do this?" And she's like, "He's at the dinner table!" And there's, there it is, finally, a break in the action that all began with insomnia. Don't despise the small things in your life. God is involved even in the small things.

She says, a foe, an enemy, the wicked Haman. Then Haman was terrified before the king and the queen. You know, I stop here to say this. You know the Jews, they run Hollywood. You know this, right? I mean, and I don't say that to disparage them, but they do. And the reason why is because they're amazing storytellers. They know how to tell a good story. And some of you need to get this in your spirit because you're not understanding how life works.

The reason that they tell good stories is because these people for 3,500 years have been through hell and back. They've had people hate them, try to kill them. You can go from Pharaoh to Haman to Hitler to Hamas to Hezbollah. They all start with H for some reason. Maybe because they all come from the pit of hell.

And they've been coming for these people for thousands upon thousands upon thousands of years. And every time you think they're gonna be gone, they make a comeback because God is faithful to his promises and he's gonna preserve that people until Jesus Christ comes again. And what they got as a result, you gotta get this, what they got as a result was a good story. Do you know what makes a good story? Trouble. Hardship.

Some of you gotta start looking at your life as, oh, this is what God is doing. He's writing a better story. Because a story where you get everything that you want and everything goes your way and you always succeed and everybody loves you is,

And no one can relate to it because everyone struggles and everyone goes through trials and tribulations. And it doesn't matter how much money you make. And it doesn't matter how good you look. Everybody goes through difficulties. And if you want God to do something with your difficulties, give Him your life, surrender your plans, and say, God, have your way with this challenge.

I want other people to hear how you saved me from that. I want other people to hear how you restored my heart. I want other people to hear how you brought me back from cancer, how you saved my kid from fornication, how you delivered my family and brought me to this place because God takes pleasure in bringing his people back from the brink again and again. And he wants to do that in you. And Esther just finally says it. Haman, this guy, he wants to kill us. Verse 7, and the king rose in wrath.

Verse 1.

And verse 8 says, the king returned from the palace garden to the place where they were drinking wine as Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was. And the king said, is he even going to go and molest my wife in front of me in my own palace? And there's a legend about this moment the Jews have that Haman, when he was begging for his life, just stood there before the queen and was like, please intervene. Save me. Don't let him kill me. And an angel came up behind him and shoved him on top of the queen.

I love that. I love that legend because it reminds me of something that some of you need a reminder of. There's angels at work on behalf of God's people. Do you believe this? You've got to understand there are spiritual forces of wickedness coming against you, but I got better news. There are stronger angels and mightier angels that are working for your good.

You don't just got Christ in you. You don't just got the Holy Spirit in you. You don't got just the Father watching over you. You don't just got the church supporting you. But you've got angels going to work for your protection. The Bible says they're ministering spirits sent to serve those who are called to eternal life in Christ Jesus. I don't know about you, but I pray for angels. Do you pray? I don't pray to angels. I pray for angels.

I say, Father, set your angels around my children. When my kids get their driver's license, every time they get their driver's license, I say, all right, Lord, I need some extra angels around that child now. Some of you need to pray angels around your family, angels around your children, angels around your home, Lord. I want protection in the spiritual realm so that the enemy doesn't have his way with my family. So the angel pushes them. I think that's what happened. Anyway, verse 9. Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs...

In attendance on the king said, moreover, the gallows that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, whose word saved the king, is standing at Haman's house, 50 cubits high. And the king said, hang him on that. So they hanged Haman on the very gallows that he prepared for Mordecai. You know, there's a proverb that talks about this reality that happens to Haman right here. It's Proverbs 26, 27, and it says this. He who digs a pit will fall into it.

Be careful, Christians, of digging pits for your nemesis. Be careful, Christians, of trying to get other people back. It's childish. It is unfaithful to God. And it rarely works out for you.

You know what I'm talking about. Some of you were quiet today. You got to know what I'm talking about. You give that person the silent treatment because you want to let them know that you're angry so you never talk to them. I'm not going to talk to them anymore. Okay, are you fifth? Are you in fifth grade? Is that what's going on here? Or you do the innuendo post on Facebook. You're really aiming it at them, but you're, you know, trying to aim and target them or whatever. It's like, let's stop being children. We are God's people. We are Christ's.

He's got it. His vengeance belongs to God. He'll pay back whatever wrongs we've suffered. He'll pay back and he pays back better than we could ever think. And so this is Haman though. That's Haman's spirit. And, and he, and it kills him. He dug a pit. He fell into it. He built a gallows and he hung on it. So now let me summarize the rest of the book. Haman is dead. But the threat on the Jews' life is still there because the edict could not be revoked.

So God takes the, not God, the king takes the ring off of Haman's finger, the signet ring of authority, and he puts it on Mordecai's finger. This is another symbol, a symbol of our reality. Do you understand that the devil had authority over this earth up until Jesus died and rose again? Now the devil got that authority in the garden with Adam. When Adam disobeyed God and listened to the devil, he lost dominion. He lost authority on this planet.

That's where the wars and the chaos and the degradation, all the evil comes from. And Jesus came and undid what Adam did wrong. Jesus obeyed perfectly. He followed the Father. He laid down his life as a perfect sinless sacrifice. And he rose again triumphantly on the third day. And he got back our authority. Do you realize that you have authority in Christ Jesus over your life? Over the spirits, over the realms of the unseen things.

You've got authority in Jesus' name. Some of you have got to learn to walk around your house in Jesus' name. I just take authority over this house right now. Some of you have got to take authority on the way to work. I take authority over my spirit on the way to work in Jesus' name. Some of you, you can't keep your mouth shut. You open mouth, you insert foot. You don't know why you keep putting things in your mouth that shouldn't be in your mouth. You've got to say, I take authority over my mouth in Jesus' name. Amen.

Some of you got thoughts that you don't know why they come into your head. You're getting dreams. You don't know why they're coming into your head. You got to take authority. You have authority in the spiritual realm, not because of who you are, but because who Jesus is.

So he gives them the signet ring, and Mordecai and Esther write up a new proposal. Here's another edict to counter, they can't unwrite it, but to counter the first edict. The Jews can now defend themselves. And so they get this edict written, and it's spread throughout the city of Susa, and they go to work, and on the day they were supposed to be attacked, they actually fight back, and they defend themselves, and they kill the sons of Haman and 500 other people.

But they need another day. And so Esther goes back and says, I need another day to do this. There's a lot of enemies out there beyond the city of Susa in the realm of the empire. So they send in letters all throughout the empire that the Jews can defend themselves. And 75,000 enemies attack the Jews and the Jews strike back and strike them down. And the Bible says that many people become Jews because the fear of the Jews had fallen on them. It's an amazing turnaround. God specializes in quick reversals. Some of you need to tell yourself that right now.

This story is not done yet. Somebody say this after me. This story. Oh, you got to say it like you mean it. This story is not done yet. Somebody say this. This family is not done yet. Somebody say my future is not done yet. God is still working. Do you believe it? Shout amen. Come on. You got to stir yourself up and talk faith into your life.

I can't be the only person excited this morning. You might be weak and tired. So am I. I haven't eaten, but I'm anointed by the Holy Spirit of God and he is forming and he is working through me and he's going to bring victory into our lives. They take authority over their enemies. They have victory over their enemies that were bound to defeat them. Instead, they got defeated and the Jews were victorious. Oh man, I wish I could get this into someone's head today. You are a victor. You are more than a conqueror. You are not a loser. You are a victor.

You are not the subject of what's happened to you. You are the object of God's grace over you and His love that wants to be deposited in you and His victory that is certain for you. And the best is yet to come. So they went two days. And then Mordecai sends letters throughout all the realm and says, look Jews, oh fellow Jews, letters go out. We're going to celebrate these two days together.

Every year, forever. And it becomes the Feast of Purim. And do you know that to this day, the Jews celebrate the Feast of Purim? It's at the last of the winter season and at the beginning of spring. And I think that's a perfect time to celebrate victory. Because winter can get you down. Amen. Winter can get you down. Winter can get you like beaten up and defeated. But every year, just when it's as dark as it can possibly look, we've got to remind ourselves that spring is coming down the road. Amen.

That's what the Feast of Purim is. Here's the last verse of Esther. Last verse. Verse 3 of chapter 10. Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Ahasuerus, and he was great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brothers, for he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people. I want to end this series by speaking some peace over you.

Peace in the midst of whatever's distressing you or freaking you out or confusing you. Four ways to get it. Are you ready? From Mordecai's life. Number one, do good wherever you are in the name of Christ. Wherever you are. Now, Mordecai, that's what made his life turn around. He did good. He was working at the king's gate. Where did he live? He lived in Susa. He lived in the capital city of Persia. Understand.

He was in exile. He was a Jew living in a foreign land. He was one of -- listen to this very carefully, everybody -- he was one of God's people living in a pagan, heathen world. Sound familiar? Do you feel strange to this world, Christian? Do you feel like, "What is going on? Why are the inmates running the asylum?" Do you get strange to the things that are happening? What crazy is coming down the pike this week?

If you feel that way, it's because you are, listen, you were born again. You are not of this world, Jesus says. You don't belong here. This is not your home. Somebody say, this is not my home. But you still need to do good. Learn how to do good in the foreign places. Learn how to love some pagans in Jesus' name. Love your non-believing neighbor. Somebody needs to go to work this week and be the guy who buys lunch online.

Just to bless people. Do good. Some of you, you keep moaning instead of promoting. You keep complaining instead of contributing. And as long as you're a complainer, you're never going to get anywhere. I have people who work for me. And I'll tell you something. The complainers don't last very long. They don't. It's annoying to have people complaining all the time. Be somebody who works positively wherever you are. Mordecai did good for a pagan king. He saved his life.

Now listen to this, and this is so important. After he was celebrated, after he was led on the horse by Haman through the streets of Persia, do you know what Haman, do you know what Mordecai did? Look at it, chapter six, back to chapter six, verse 12. It says, Mordecai returned to the king's gate. He was celebrated for a day, and then he went back and did his job. He just did good. He just did good. By the way, he was at the king's gate, chapter two, verse 21 says, he was at the king's gate when he saw the assassination plot

that the two eunuchs of the king were trying to carry out. And so what you see here is a faithfulness in Mordecai. And I think this is so important for some of you because you do good and you don't see results and then you stop doing good. Do you understand that between Esther chapter 2 and Esther chapter 5 and 6 was five years?

That Mordecai saves the king's life in chapter 2 doesn't get recognized, doesn't get promoted, doesn't get benefits. Nothing happens. But it gets recorded.

Five years go by. Things get worse. Life gets darker. The edict is enacted. He's going to die. And then, at the right time, he gets rewarded. Here's what you've got to learn how to do in your life. You've got to learn to sow seeds of goodness in your present for fruits of blessing in your future. Some of you want instant gratification. You are microwave Christians. God is not a microwave.

He is a slow cooker. He is a barbecue pit. Come on, somebody. He slow cooks that meat of goodness in your life until the juices are boiling out of the center of it. And it smells so wonderful. And I'm making you depressed right now, aren't I? This is part of my fast angst coming out because I've been watching all the advertisements for food and I don't know about you, but I'm like, I'm going to eat that when I'm done. I'm going to eat that when I'm done. I'm going to be 400 pounds by April 4th. That's what's going to happen to me.

It's just a season. The fast is, the feast is coming. Amen, somebody. But you got to learn how to plant seeds in this fast, in this fast. And I think some of you got to break free from this because I feel it in the spirit and I'm going to say it. Nothing's happened and you feel like the fast has been a failure. Um, that's not how it works. You fast in one season, you get the fruit in another season. You, some of you might get the fruit from this fast five years from now. Are you willing to do good?

Are you willing to go back to that gate? Are you willing to keep working? Are you willing to keep sowing good seed into your life? The world has enough people who are out to get all that they can right now. And those people are the most insufferable people on the planet. Most of them work in Hollywood. We've got to learn to be givers and doers of good wherever we are. And here's the second point. It leads me right into it. Don't seek human recognition. This is the way Haman lived.

Do you understand that Haman dies hanging on the gallows that he made for Mordecai? But the only reason why he made the gallows for Mordecai, do you know why he made the gallows for Mordecai? Because Mordecai, and this is so insane to me, Mordecai was the only person in the empire who didn't worship him. Oh, if I could just spend a whole message on this. Don't seek people's praise. It's a trap. I don't know if you've met people, but they can be awful.

Have you met people? They can love you today and hate you tomorrow. They'll build you up today. They'll tear you down tomorrow. And here's the worst part. If you get people to love you and like you and celebrate you, nobody tells you this. You got to keep them loving you and celebrating you and worshiping you and loving you. That's impossible. And guess what you lose in the midst of making everybody love you? You lose you. You become a people pleaser.

and not a God-server. And God doesn't care about you pleasing people. You understand that you can't properly parent if you need your kid's approval. I don't know this modern way of parenting. I don't get it. Johnny, tell me how you feel. What's going on? I know you're throwing a temper tantrum in the grocery aisle right now, but tell me your truth. I want to hear from you. No! Pull Johnny out of the grocery store, into the car, back home, and spank Johnny! Johnny!

That kid needs a whooping. That's what I got. I turned out okay. I don't got any twitches. You got to learn to love the fact that God has loved you with an everlasting love. You don't need the love of other people. You can't be married if you need your spouse to celebrate you. Oh, I could do a whole week on that. Husbands, your wife is not your fan.

My wife is not my fan. She does not worship me at all. Oh, this is a great story. One day I was, I preached and I got down and my wife was standing there and this Nigerian lady with a thick Nigerian accent came up to us and I was like talking to her and Cheryl comes up. I said, oh, this is my wife Cheryl. And she goes, the Nigerian lady goes, oh, you are his wife. You must be on your knees every day thanking God that you are married to this man. Now, I perceive that this woman had the gift of prophecy.

But evidently, Cheryl did not feel the same way. And it's a fun story that I tell and we tell at parties and everything. But she's not my fan. But if I lived for her approval and worship, our marriage would be a mess. Wives, same goes to you. Your husband is not your Instagram photographer. He is a grown man. Do not make him a lackey. He doesn't exist for your pleasure. He exists for God's purpose.

And you've got to learn to let go of them always needing to approve of you if you're going to be married. For heaven's sake, you should never be honest. Do good. Oh, gosh, I forgot to tell this story. Is it okay if I go to point one again and tell the story? Is it okay? Okay, so this is a true story about doing good. There was two guys who were running a broke, run-down general store in the 1800s. One was a deadbeat drunk, and one was an aspiring lawyer. He wanted to be a lawyer, but he couldn't get to be a lawyer because he had no money. And they had a conversation as they were broke and on the verge of bankruptcy.

The one who wanted to be the lawyer said, man, I wish I could get a hold of Blackstone's commentary on law. I'll sell this store tomorrow if I can get a hold of that. That's what it would cost. Sell the store, I'll buy the commentaries. His deadbeat drunk partner said, no way, we're not selling the store. They were down to their last couple of bucks. And a traveler drove by the store, stopped, and he got out of his wagon, out of his carriage, and he said, look, I got a barrel I gotta sell. I can't fit it in the carriage, and I need money desperately. Would you give me 50 cents for it? The deadbeat drunk said, no way, get out of here. We don't have any money. And the guy who wanted to be a lawyer said, you know what?

I'll give you 50 cents. His heart went out to him and he did good. He bought the barrel he didn't need, helped the stranger out, put the barrel in the back of the store. Months go by. This is a true story. This is why I needed to tell the story. Months go by. He cleans out the general store. He goes and he finds the barrel, lifts open the barrel, bunch of rubbish, pulls the rubbish out, reaches down, and underneath the rubbish was the complete set of Blackstone's commentary on law.

He pulls it up. He looks up to God and he says, maybe I'm made for something greater. Eventually the store goes bankrupt. This guy teaches himself law on his own time, in his own way, studies himself up. He runs for the state legislature. He wins six terms as a state legislature representative. He runs for U.S. Congress. He wins one term as a U.S. congressman. He runs for Senate and he loses. But do you know that he went in for president and he became the 16th president of the United States? His name was Abraham Lincoln.

It all started with one work that was good for somebody else. And then you don't seek recognition. Now, back to that one. Jesus said it's a trap. He talked about the Pharisees in John chapter 12, verse 43. He said they love the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God. Matthew 23, 5, he says everything they do is a show. It's just to be seen by others. Don't you understand that? If you're doing things to please others, you're just becoming a show. You're just becoming a people pleaser. It's a trap of life.

Do you know why you don't need people's praise or people's recognition? This is why. Because you've already got the recognition from God. And what you have to understand about God is that He is keeping accurate records of what you do. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 10, 42, whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water, just a cup of water, because you're my disciple.

then you will not lose your reward. Hebrews chapter 6, verse 10. God is not unjust to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name and serving the saints as you still do. You've got to do it not for other people's sakes. You've got to do it for God's sakes, knowing that the good seed you sow in one season will be fruit in a season yet to come. Point number three. One day can change everything. Ooh, I like this point. I like this point. That's what Esther chapter 5 and 6 tells us.

Esther chapter 5 ends with Mordecai, I'm sorry, Haman building a gallows. And Esther chapter 6, 24 hours later, Haman is hanging on those gallows. End of chapter 7. It's just 24 hours. One day can change everything. Some of you are looking at your life and saying, there's no movement. I'm not getting anywhere. I don't understand. Hey, one day. Somebody say one day. One day.

God does not need a long time to get something done. God is a miracle worker. God can do something in one day. He can do something in one moment. Don't you know that when he comes back, he's coming back in the twinkling of an eye. It's not going to take long for us to be gone from this world and be in heaven forever. It's going to happen in an instant second. And there is nothing that God can do and can't do in one day of your life. He can change everything. Somebody needs to write this down. Stop worrying about your lack of movement because God only needs a moment.

Oh, Joseph was sold as a slave by his brothers who hated him. And then he was working as a slave and he was doing good. And then he was falsely accused by Potiphar's wife. And then he was thrown into prison and he was forgotten. But on one day, Pharaoh had a dream. No one could interpret it, but that guy, that guy Joseph in the prison, he can interpret. And they pulled him out of the pit. He put him out of the prison and put him in the palace and became the prime minister of Egypt. And one day...

Or Moses, who was wandering the wilderness with his father-in-law's sheep for 40 years. He tried to deliver Israel in his own strength. He killed one Egyptian. That's as far as he got. And then he goes and he's in exile. And for 40 years, this guy, four decades, friend. I'm 46. He did my whole life outside. I'm 47. He did it all for 40 years. He was out in the wilderness with the sheep that he didn't even own.

And one day he saw a bush that didn't burn. And you know the rest of the story. Or David, who was a shepherd boy and a singer. And his father rejected him. And his brothers didn't like him. And everybody vilified him. And he was anointed by Samuel, but people still didn't pay attention to him. And he was a little delivery boy. He brought the bread and the cheese to his brothers at the army front. And he was basically doing Uber Eats all his life. That's what he was doing.

But one day he shows up as the moment that Goliath is taunting the people of Israel. And he said, who is this Philistine who would taunt Israel? And in one day that shepherd boy turns into a mighty warrior for God. God does not need a long time. He needs one day to get it done in your life. Perhaps the most famous one.

Jesus Christ healed the sick, raised the dead, cast out demons, fed the multitudes, and then he was betrayed by his own disciple, and he was abandoned by all of his other disciples, and he was handed over to pagan sinners, and he was crucified and nailed to a tree and thrown in a grave. But one day came when the grave opened and the stone rolled away, and the heavens fell down, and the angels came down, and Jesus rose on the grave and split history in half in one day. God does not need a month. He needs a day.

Some of you got to wait for the day and let God have his way through all the things that you're waiting for. One day. And ultimately, all those stories and the story of Esther and the story of Mordecai, really, there's a bigger, there's a bigger plot in mind, which brings me to point number four. Don't lose the big plot. Bringing salvation to many. Do you understand that Esther was beautiful?

But she wasn't pretty just so that she could hang out in the palace and eat at the dinner table. She wasn't pretty just so she could look a certain way in front of King Xerxes. She was beautiful for the purpose of intervening in the saving of the Jews' lives.

And Mordecai wasn't rewarded for saving the king's life simply because he deserved it and simply because, you know, he needed a leg up and he was hated by Haman. No, Mordecai was rewarded so that he could be instrumental in saving many lives. Let me tell you about your life. I started this message by saying God is working for you, but he's working what? Through you. Your story is a subplot of the big plot. Don't miss that or you will be miserable.

Ultimately, it's about saving lives, friend. Ultimately, it's about bringing people to Jesus. That's what God wants to do through you. How can you, God, use this story, this chaos, this crazy, this family, this life to bring people to Jesus? That's where life starts to get interesting, starts to make sense, starts to find its way. Then you know you're not here by accident. You're here on purpose. One day,

One day, many, many years ago, Waters Church was a small, single church up in North Massachusetts. And it was a small, little Italian Pentecostal church in the 1980s. And it had grown to about 250, 300 people. But the pastor kind of went rogue and left with a bunch of people, split the church in half, a very devastating thing for any church.

And they wallowed in lack of direction for many years. And they were looking for a pastor and looking for a pastor. And they would bring candidates in to pastor and to candidate for the pastorate job. And back in those days, you voted. And so they would take a vote and every candidate would be voted down. And if the person didn't get voted in, all the people who elect that guy would leave the church. And they went from 300 people down to 40 people, 40 people in 1990. And they went through this process for many, many, many months.

And eventually they came to a guy that they said, this guy seems pretty good. We're going to go with him. And it was a slim chance, but it was a good chance that this guy was going to get voted in

in a board meeting right after a Sunday morning. One day, a Sunday morning. And they had the pulpit open. They didn't have anybody to preach. So they called the district offices and they said, listen, is there anybody who could preach for us? We have our pulpit open. Wouldn't you know that there was a guy that was going across the United States interviewing for church positions himself. And they said, well, we're not looking for a pastor anymore. We found one, we think. And sure, if you want to come and preach, that's fine. Well, this guy was from South Africa. And he came and he preached. And some of you know who he is.

And he preached that Sunday morning, and his name is Pastor Geiser. He's the senior pastor of our church. And when he preached, you know how he preaches, and the fire came down, and the Holy Spirit fell, and people got saved and delivered, and things were happening. It was amazing church service, and everyone was blown away. And they went to the meeting after that service, and they voted the other guy down, and they said, we want this guy to be our pastor. One day can change everything.

And I used to go to that church as a kid. I used to go to the church as a teenager. And one day I showed up. One day I showed up. And the kids, the teens were hanging out at the church. And I remember we were hanging out. We were in a car driving down a road. I know the road where it happened. And one of the kids said to me, hey Tim, would you like to come with us to a youth conference? And I hated youth conferences. And I didn't really, I wasn't really interested in church. I didn't really want to, you know, be all that engaged in church. I kind of just went because my parents brought me. But for some reason I said yes. And I went to that youth conference. And I got

to the youth conference and a guy got up on stage and started screaming like I'm screaming to you and started talking about the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit wants to feel you. And I came down to the altar and I put my hands up and the Holy Spirit fell into my life and started a fire that's been burning for 36 years, friend. And God called me into the ministry. God called me to be a pastor. One day, friend, one day can change everything.

And then that started a battle between my mother and I. Oh, we had a battle. We had a battle all through my teen years. That happened when I was 12 years old. And I told my mom, I want to be a pastor. She said, no, you're going to be an engineer. And I said, no, I want to be a pastor. She said, no, you're going to be an engineer or a computer programmer. You're going to make a lot of money because she was a pastor's daughter and she didn't want me to go through the hardships of a pastor's family. I said, no, mom,

no, Mom, God has called me into this ministry. I got to do it. And we fought all through life. But because the Bible says, honor your father and mother, she filled out my applications for college. She did it. And she said, you're going to go to this school, and you're going to get this degree, and you're going to be a very, very successful young man. And I was resistant, but it's like, I'm fine. And then one day, she went to church up in Norwood with Pastor Geiser, and she had a conversation with him. And she said, I can't understand. My son wants to be like you, but I want to

to be an engineer. And Pastor Geiser said, listen, let him go and pursue the ministry because if he's not called, if he's not called, he'll give up and he'll become whatever you want him to become. He'll become an engineer or whatever. And she said, you know what? That sounds like a good idea. And she prayed for me to run away from the ministry. Turns out I was called, friend. Turns out God had his hand on my life.

life. And one day, and one conversation, and one Sunday can change everything for us and for you. You might be going through the valley of the shadow of death, but God is with you. You might be struggling with depression, but God's not done with you. You might be in suicide watch, but God wants to resurrect you. The story is not over. Resurrection's happened. Jesus is on the throne. I'm telling somebody, put your faith in a God who does miracles.

who opens graves, who stills the waters. Oh, God's gonna do something through our church. God's gonna do something through this fast. The best is yet to come. Don't lose. Hallelujah. I know some of you are dying to get those last blanks filled in, so let me put it on the screen. There are no accidents when you're in Christ. It's all part of the plan God knows from beginning to end. And I need to tell somebody here, you're not an accident. You're not a mistake.

And your life isn't an accident. There's no accidents in Christ. There's no such thing as chance. If you want chance, go to Vegas. God orchestrates. God ordains. God is working for you and through you, no matter what the world is doing. Would you stand with me at this point? If you're done writing those things down, would you stand with me? Let's give God...

Let's give God a praise. Come on out. Let's give God a praise in this place. Hallelujah, Jesus.

Well, I trust that this message has been a blessing to your life and empowered your faith. I've got a lot more content for you available on our website. Check out timhatchlive.com or scan the QR code on the screen right now. Also consider making a contribution to this ministry. Your generosity empowers this content to go farther than ever before. Thank you for joining us on Tim Hatch Live, and I look forward to seeing you right here very soon.

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