Announcing With Trumpets

“But Haman rushed home with his head covered in grief and told Zeresh his wife and all his friends everything that happened to him.”  Esther 6:12.

We see in Scripture that Haman could not get away from Mordecai quickly enough after Mordecai was honored by the king for spoiling an assassination attempt five years earlier.  No doubt Haman unrolled a story of injustice, anger and bitterness.  He was the victim here and everybody was going to hear every sordid detail!  Things are not that much different in 2012.

Much earlier in life I seemed to tell every aspect of my life to whoever would listen.  I would wear my sack of woes around like a backpack, happy to unload and spread its contents neatly around like a picnic.  If someone else would tell a story with greater woes than mine, I would certainly pack up my burdens and run for cover.  No one was going to rain on my picnic.  Through going deeper with God, I have learned that God doesn’t raise victims… He empowers people.  Mordecai had every reason to feel ignored, neglected and victimized.  The very king whose life he saved was honoring the very person who was trying to wipe out Mordecai’s people.   Nowhere in Scripture do we find Mordecai tooting his own horn, demanding honor and recognition.  In contrast, we find him doing his job without any words of entitlement on his part. Five years later the king developed insomnia and was reminded through his journals of Mordecai’s act of courage.

This life brings moments of burdens and moments of blessings.  We find ourselves rewarded for things we do not deserve, and challenging consequences for things we cannot control.  As Christians we must see ourselves as sitting at the King’s gate with the goal of protecting His message.  We have a role to serve in His kingdom, apart from the accomplishments of others.  We cannot sit at the King’s gate drawing attention to ourselves when things go wrong…we are here to draw attention to our King.  If anyone who has walked this earth deserves to feel like a victim, it is Jesus Christ our Savior.  No one has ever carried a backpack of burdens heavier than the Lamb, yet Jesus remained focused on the King’s work.  While others pointed to themselves, He pointed to the Father.  His reward was not in this temporary place but seated next to God in the eternal kingdom.  He walked out His own words of Matthew 6:1-4.

‘Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men, to be seen by them.  If you do, you will have no reward from the Father in heaven…do not announce it with trumpets…to be honored by men.  I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full…do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret.  Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.’

If we are going to announce anything with trumpets, let it be what Jesus did for us instead of what man has done against us.