Read Esther 9

Jewish Halloween? Yes... You read that right... I should probably mention that one of my friends is a Jewish Rabbi. To this day the Jews still celebrate the holiday of Purim. My Rabbi friend once invited me and my buddy to come to the synagog for their Purim festivities and well... It felt like Halloween... They all dress up in costumes and pass out candy. The best part of the whole celebration is when they sit down and read through the entire story of Esther. Granted, it was in Hebrew and I couldn't understand it, but what I did understand was that every time they said the name Haman everyone in the audience was supposed to yell, "boo!" You get the idea. As goofy as it all seemed the Jewish people were still deeply grateful for God's faithfulness and Esther's role in their deliverance. Something that is very evident in the Old Testament is that over and over again God wants his people to remember his work, his faithfulness and his love. The Old Testament is filled with stories of memorials the were built, celebrations that were had, and offerings given in response to what God has done. When you look back on your life how have you seen God's faithfulness? What are the things that God has delivered and rescued you from? How have you celebrated God's work in your life. Often times we don't feel comfortable talking about the victories in our own lives that God has accomplished. I believe deeply in the art of celebration and giving thanks to God for all the things he does in our lives. God is so good! Celebrate him this week!