Word & the Wild

This is Word and the Wild. It's a one year Bible adventure with friends. My name is Owen. I'm your host and your guide. Delighted to be together with you on this 12 month journey as a podcast plus community where we read the Bible for ourselves, but not by ourselves. Courage, commitment, and a suspicious number of coincidences.

It's a hard hat area here as we jump into Week 38, led by Ezra and Nehemiah, the Jewish people who have returned to the Promised Land Face the tough task of rebuilding their homes, their city, and their culture. Meanwhile, God is building something too. And it's almost time for him to reveal his centuries long project.

So hello and welcome in want to say a special welcome to the Word & the Wild PLUS community. Uh, they're making this. Possible for all of us here, this nonprofit endeavor to embark on this one year Bible reading adventure as part of the word of the wild plus tribe. They enjoy access to our private, safe online space where no honest question is a dumb question.

Along with a weekly live stream, Q&A bonus content like articles, interactions, and even some live stream teaching gatherings with yours truly. So thanks for being part of this and making it happen for all of us. Hey, I got to say also real quick, once again, Jesus is coming soon. And by that, I mean, we're about to be hitting the new Testament here on our adventure before we know it at this point, we are just days away.

So now is a great time for you, my friend, if you haven't already done. so Time to jump into the word the wild plus tribe. For yourself. All right. So check the show notes for how to become a member or get all the details over at word and the wild. com. There's links in the show notes for, uh, the Bible we are using.

You can follow right along with us, get your own copy and jump in, uh, how to connect with us on the podcast and how to become a member of the word the wild plus tribe for yourself. All of that over at word and the wild. com. All right, with that, my friend, it's time put on the hard hat, you know, strap on that, uh, that construction vest, you know, the, the bright orange one with the reflective tape and let's jump in to what we're seeing in the story here in week 38.

All right, well, to jump in, let's start here. I want to invite you to just look around. Seriously, look around your surroundings. Where are you? Uh, uh, more importantly, uh, the question being, uh, are you in a place you don't want to be? Maybe you are doing the dishes right now. I listen to podcasts while I do the dishes.

Man, I hate doing the dishes. I don't know why, but there's just something about it. It really grinds on me. It's gross. That's that like wet, clammy water. Nasty. It's repetitive. It's mindless. And no matter what I do, those dishes are coming back tomorrow. I hate it. Maybe you're on the road. Traffic. On the way to grind out another day of work.

Breathing in the exhaust of the brake happy guy in front of you. Man, I did that for so many years. Absolutely hate it. That's a place I never want to be. Well, those are locations like physical spaces. What about a place in life? Are you in a place in life? You don't want to be if you're honest. Maybe you're a mom with little demandos that just will not stop pawing at you, won't stop touching you.

Maybe you're single still. again. Or maybe you're retired and bored, or young and underpaid, or, or dealing with the aches and pains of a body that's wearing out. All of these places that we just don't want to be. You know, as we walk through this stretch of our epic story, that is the Bible, uh, we, we've, we, uh, are encountering so many amazing people.

Uh, we're encountering Esther, man. I think of Ezra, I think of, of Nehemiah. We're seeing them there this week and man, we admire those people. They are so brave and so, so full of faith, right? So courageous, but here's the thing about each one of these people. We're seeing their stories. Uh, all are about their, their response to situations, to places that they don't want to be.

You know, I like to imagine sometimes this might sound strange to you, but I like to imagine sometimes sitting down, uh, with, with people like Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, and just, you know, I like to imagine what they might say. Uh, to, uh, to us, if, if, if, you know, if we had a chance to invite him over for tacos, you know, we said, Hey, come have a taco and, you know, offer a little encouragement, coach us up a little bit.

You know what I think they would say? I think they would say, God is building something. So hang in there, hold on. And try to see your story inside of the story, right? Uh, take Esther, for example. The Sunday School version of her story is of a brave and elegant queen who proves that beauty treatments can indeed save the world.

Inspiration for women's conferences everywhere, right? But the real story is a little more gritty than that, right? I mean, she's basically a victim of trafficking. She's held against her will. She exists only as an object of enjoyment. For a despotic dictator. All right. But in that environment, she manages to create a survivable scenario inside of this dangerous place.

And then she's asked once again, to risk her life. Her life has been on the line this whole time, but risk her life again, not for her own gain, but, but for her people. And I look at her story. I look at all that. My, my human reaction is just. God, I mean, that is just too much asking too much from this woman.

She, she didn't, she didn't go looking for this, uh, you know, then you look at Ezra and Nehemiah, they have very different, uh, stories in some ways, but there are some similarities. Um, they also managed to survive the world of intrigue that is the Persian palace and to rise to a level of modest job security, you know, they're doing pretty well.

They found a status quo and equilibrium, but then they both risk it all because their hearts are broken, not by their own situation, but by the state of affairs, uh, in the lives of other people. Um, you know, uh, all three of those characters, uh, honestly, like us sometimes too, you know, they, they know what it's like, uh, what it feels like to be stuck in a place, uh, that we don't want to be, uh, it can feel so frustrated, right?

It can feel so, so shaken, so afraid and anxious and so, so trapped. Uh, the characters in our story right now here in this week of the adventure, they know. What it's like to face, uh, real pressure, internal and external pressure. And, you know, it's almost like God sends some of his favorite people. Into some of the most difficult situations.

We're seeing this. If you look back and here we are standing at nearly the end of the old Testament, we can look back for quite a ways and, and see quite a bit. Uh, if we look back at, you can almost see a pattern emerging here where, where God does, uh, Put some of, of, of amazing people, uh, in the kind of situations where one person can change the course of events, maybe even change the course of history itself.

Uh, and these, these are people of faith and courage that, you know, when others would run, they walk in where, when others would look to escape, they, they dig in and when most would give up and they hang tough, but they aren't foolish. Uh, Esther's no dummy. Ezra, Nehemiah, they know that the stakes are high, but you know what?

They know that their calling is higher. There's this commitment to their God that turns all the butterflies they must be feeling in their stomach. Turns that into just an iron stomach, able to take some punches. And it gives them a conviction that in turn gives them a courage. The kind of courage that overrides their instinct for self preservation.

God loves them, and so he sends them in. And they, in turn, risk their life for love. Love for their God. Love for their people. Love for their neighbor. Remember the conversation between Esther and her cousin, Mordecai, uh, at the point in her story where Mordecai asks her to go make the bold move to, to, to kind of barge in, uh, the throne room of King Xerxes, uh, in order to save the lives of her people.

Uh, remember that, uh, Esther, of course, she explains it, Hey, this is a big risk. Take a listen to what she says to Mordecai there. She's like, Hey, this is a big ask. She says all the king's officials and even the people in the provinces know that anyone who appears before the king is in her court without being invited is, is doomed to die unless the king holds out his gold scepter.

And, and, and the king has not called me in, uh, for 30 days, Esther says. Man, but I love this reply from Mordecai. Uh, it's, it's like a rally cry for all of us who find ourselves in tough places, dangerous places, places we do not want to be. He says, look, don't think for a moment that because you're in the palace that you will escape when all the other Jews are killed, if you keep quiet at a time like this.

Deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. And this line, just amazing. Mordecai says, who knows if perhaps you were made queen for such a time as this. Esther chapter 4 verses 11 through 14. God can use anyone. Mordecai is convinced of it. He knows the story, and now you begin to know the story too.

You've seen it time and time again in the story that the Bible wants to tell. God can use anyone. I mean, from a talking donkey, to a he man with a she weakness, to a boy with a slingshot, to mentally unstable world leaders, to even Satan himself. God We've seen God use all those characters. Mordecai knows this too.

Mordecai has no doubt that God will keep his promises to his people and that God will somehow come to their rescue some way. Oh, but then he says this though. I love it. He says, look, Esther, this is your purpose. This is your moment. You were made a queen. For such a time as this, so move those feet into Xerxes throne room and let God handle moving the King's scepter.

Man, if we could buy Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, these guys, we could buy them a taco. I feel like that's what they might say to encourage us as we face life in places we don't want to be. They would say this. They would say there is a purpose. For the places God takes us. There is a plan for the positions God puts us in and for the people God surrounds us with, even the difficult ones, maybe even especially the difficult ones.

Yes, God can use anyone, but he wants to use you and not just use you. He wants to team up with you on behalf of the people in your circle and under your care to show them his love. So you are a queen for such a time as this. You are a mom, a dad, uh, an employee, a supervisor, unemployed, young, old. For such a time as this.

And as we step even closer toward the events of the New Testament, we're going to see, uh, in the life of Jesus himself, that the trust in God's plans and God's timing really is everything. Uh, even when God makes us wait. God is never late and he has a purpose. for everything. Ezra and Nehemiah continue the struggle to rebuild Jerusalem.

And this week, as we step into where we're going now in the story, uh, they're going to face some new challenges we haven't seen yet, and man, they're going to face some of the same old problems we have seen time and time again, but get this while they build. God's story builds too. He's following his blueprint and the time is almost right for him to send one more of his favorite people into a tough place to move his plans forward at just the right time.

Hey, enjoy the journey this week, my friend. How's it going for you so far? Man? I'd love to hear from you. Hit us up on Facebook. If you're not already part of the word and the wild Facebook group, search for it. Join us or, or look for us on Insta. You'll find us at the Wild US there on Insta. And while you're at it, hey, make sure you have subscribed to this podcast.

Uh, we got Apple Podcast. Spotify, YouTube, you know, all the places find us subscribe. So you don't miss a thing. Word of the wild is a one year Bible adventure with friends. I'm loving this. I hope you are to jump in. If you haven't already, uh, to the Word & the Wild PLUS community and to all you current members of the community, man, thank you so much for making this journey a reality, I'll be seeing you out there in the wild.

That's our online private community space. Everyone else don't be a stranger. Like I say, subscribe to the podcast, follow word of the wild on Facebook. And let's get into some conversation there. Hey, word and the wild is a line house community. It's part of the line house community network. That's a nonprofit organization with a mission to bring neighbors together to promote awareness, appreciation, and understanding of the Bible because friendship and God's word.

Change lives and change cities. Word in the wild is presented by the LumaVoz podcast network. Tip of the cap to you as always our friends at LumaVoz. And with that, we are out. I'm Owen, your host and your guide until next time, my friend, I'll be seeing you out there on the trail in the Word and the Wild.

You have yourself a great week.