Esther 8:1-2 (ESV)

[1] On that day King Ahasuerus gave to Queen Esther the house of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came before the king, for Esther had told what he was to her. [2] And the king took off his signet ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.

In two short verses we see a reversal of fortune. Haman went from being favored by the king to being dead. Mordecai went from facing death to being the king’s favored. It is not unlike the reversal of fortune in Jesus’ story of the rich man and Lazarus. The beggar ended up in a place of comfort while the rich man ended up in a place of torture. It is a good reminder that now is not all that there is. For believers, now is only the beginning. Now only lasts for a lifetime, but our hope is eternal.

Too often we question the presence, love, or goodness of God because now we have pain or difficulty. Too often we act as though now is everything. Too often we give lip service to eternity, but live as though there is nothing beyond this life. What do we truly believe? Do we really believe Jesus’ words, “The meek…shall inherit the earth” (Mt 5:5)? Do we really believe Paul’s words “Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven” (1 Corinthians 15:49)? Do we really believe Jesus promise, “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” (John 14:3)? Do we really believe that God is using the hard things in our lives to produce the character of God in us as Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:6-7.

[6] In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, [7] so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

I fear that we give lip service to faith, but we walk largely by sight. We get discouraged when we can’t see hope. We question God when we can’t see the future. We are ready to walk away from our faith if God doesn’t fix things for us now. We act as though God were our personal valet instead of the eternal, immortal, invisible, all-powerful, Creator God. We act as though we have a right to sit in judgment over him, when the truth is that he will one day sit in judgment over all mankind. We act as though we are king. God forgive us.

Mordecai’s and Haman’s fortunes was flipped. Haman had everything for a short season, but it didn’t last. Mordecai ended up with it all in the end. If someone had read only the first few chapters of Esther they would say, “I want to be like Haman.” When you read the whole story you say, “I want to be Esther or Mordecai.” Today, whatever God calls us to experience, may we look beyond the darkness of the moment to the unending light of eternity and trust God. Sometimes we have to drive through the fog, but the way is clear on the other side. Trust him.