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Speaker 1: Life Audio. Thank you for listening to your Nightly Scripture,

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Speaker 1: a calming, scripture centered devotional podcast designed to help you

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Speaker 1: end each day with God's word in your mind and

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Speaker 1: on your heart. Right after this short word from our sponsors,

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Speaker 1: we'll reflect on tonight's scripture Esther four. Tonight's scripture reflection

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Speaker 1: is written by Greg Grandchamp and read by Lea Gerard.

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Speaker 1: Esther four, when Mordecai learned of all that had been done,

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Speaker 1: he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and

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Speaker 1: went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. But

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Speaker 1: he went only as far as the king's gait, because

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Speaker 1: no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it.

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Speaker 1: In every province to which the edict in order of

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Speaker 1: the King came, there was great mourning among the Jews,

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Speaker 1: with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.

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Speaker 1: When Esther's eunuchs and female attendants came and told her

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Speaker 1: about Mordecai, she was in great distress. She sent clothes

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Speaker 1: for him to put on instead of his sackcloth, but

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Speaker 1: he would not accept them. Then Esther summoned to Thak

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Speaker 1: one of the king's eunuchs assigned to attend her and

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Speaker 1: ordered him to find out what was troubling Mordecai and why.

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Speaker 1: So Hathak went out to Mordechai in the open square

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Speaker 1: of the city in front of the King's gate. Mordechai

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Speaker 1: told him everything that had happened to him, including the

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Speaker 1: exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into

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Speaker 1: the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. He

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Speaker 1: also gave him a copy of the text of the

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Speaker 1: Edict for their Annihilation, which had been published in Susa,

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Speaker 1: to show to Esther and explain it to her, and

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Speaker 1: he told him to instruct her to go into the

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Speaker 1: King's presence to beg for mercy and plead with him

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Speaker 1: for her people. Hathak went back and reported to Esther

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Speaker 1: what Mordechai had said. Then she instructed him to say

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Speaker 1: to Mordecai, all the King's officials and the people of

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Speaker 1: the royal provinces know that for any man or woman

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Speaker 1: who approaches the King in the inner court without being summoned,

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Speaker 1: the King has but one law that they be put

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Speaker 1: to death unless the King extends the gold scepter to

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Speaker 1: them and spares their lives. But thirty days have passed

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Speaker 1: since I was called to go to the king. When

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Speaker 1: Esther's words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer,

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Speaker 1: do not think that because you are in the King's house,

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Speaker 1: you alone of all the Jews, will escape. For if

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Speaker 1: you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for

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Speaker 1: the Jews will arise from another place, But you and

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Speaker 1: your father's family will perish. And who knows but that

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Speaker 1: you have come to your royal position for such a

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Speaker 1: time as this. Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai.

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Speaker 1: Go gather together all the Jews who are at Susa

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Speaker 1: and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for

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Speaker 1: three days, night or day. I and my attendants will

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Speaker 1: fast as you do. When this is done, I will

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Speaker 1: go to the king, even though it is against the law.

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Speaker 1: And if I perish, I perish. So Mordecai went away

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Speaker 1: and carried out all of Esther's instructions. Who knows who

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Speaker 1: knows but that we are here for such a time

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Speaker 1: as this. As we review our days, we just might

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Speaker 1: have to come to grips with a moment or event

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Speaker 1: where we felt tempted to stretch beyond our personal comfort zone.

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Speaker 1: We may have felt a nudge to share our faith

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Speaker 1: with someone we just met, or to pray over a stranger,

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Speaker 1: possibly the cashier at the market who was almost in tears,

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Speaker 1: or upon hearing a heartbreaking story from someone we didn't

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Speaker 1: know well, or even the temptation to give beyond our norm.

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Speaker 1: Perhaps we know we should confront someone about a situation,

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Speaker 1: and we resist, just as we know we should stretch

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Speaker 1: our joints and muscles, So we are called to stretch

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Speaker 1: the courage of our faith beyond our comfort level. We

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Speaker 1: each have faced situations where we could or should have

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Speaker 1: said something, should have spoken up. We promise ourselves next

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Speaker 1: time we will. Then the next time comes and goes,

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Speaker 1: and our own hearts break for the other people and

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Speaker 1: for staying silent. Esther was facing a challenging situation herself,

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Speaker 1: one that was life threatening. Her uncle Mordecai challenged Esther,

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Speaker 1: who resisted. Mordecai then asked Esther if maybe, just maybe

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Speaker 1: she had come to her royal position in the King's

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Speaker 1: court for just this purpose, for such a time as this. Indeed,

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Speaker 1: our lives may not be at stake, but we all

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Speaker 1: have resisted the unknown outcome. Courage is not the absence

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Speaker 1: of fear. Courage is feeling the fear, the anxiety, and

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Speaker 1: still stepping out in faith. And God has promised us

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Speaker 1: that when we stretch out in faith, we may feel discomfort,

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Speaker 1: but He will be with us. His grace is sufficient

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Speaker 1: for us because His power is made perfect in our weakness,

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Speaker 1: in our discomfort. When we boldly step out in faith,

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Speaker 1: we may be surprised by how a good stretch of

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Speaker 1: our spiritual muscles can strengthen our entire spiritual life. Father,

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Speaker 1: thank you for your strength in helping me overcome my anxiety,

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Speaker 1: my fear in stepping out in faith. Thank you for

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Speaker 1: the courage to be bold. While I may still feel discomfort,

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Speaker 1: I know you will be with me guiding me. I

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Speaker 1: know your Holy Spirit will give me the words I

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Speaker 1: should say. I take comfort knowing you will help me

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Speaker 1: overcome my discomfort. Amen, thank you for listening to your

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Speaker 1: Nightly scripture. Tonight's scripture was read from the New International

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Speaker 1: Version by Biblica. All rights reserved. If Tonight's episode blessed, you,

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Speaker 1: Nightly Scripture is a production of Life Audio and Salem Media.

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Speaker 1: Thank you and we'll see you tomorrow. Night