1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:15,860 Welcome to Walk in the Truth podcast. How do we know where to find answers to the toughest 2 00:00:15,860 --> 00:00:21,080 questions in life? While the simplest answer is the Bible, where do we start this search 3 00:00:21,080 --> 00:00:27,300 and how do we discover this truth? Today, in this teaching podcast, John Meador, lead 4 00:00:27,300 --> 00:00:32,440 pastor of Cross City Church, takes a specific text of the Bible and helps us find truth 5 00:00:32,440 --> 00:00:40,520 for the life we're searching for. We are so glad that you've joined us this morning 6 00:00:40,520 --> 00:00:46,120 and I do want to reiterate next week is a special week because it's a mission conference 7 00:00:46,120 --> 00:00:51,840 week, conference day, and Paul Chetwood is the name of the president of the International 8 00:00:51,840 --> 00:00:56,640 Mission Board, largest mission sending organization in the world and he'll be with us in all 9 00:00:56,640 --> 00:01:01,880 of our services and you will not want to miss this because this guy really helps lead more 10 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:07,200 than 4,500 missionaries serving, sharing the gospel all around the world and we're very 11 00:01:07,200 --> 00:01:11,840 involved in supporting them and I think next week will be a very, very special week. This 12 00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:16,520 week is Foster and Adoption Sunday and we're going to be talking about that not only in 13 00:01:16,520 --> 00:01:21,160 the message but also as you lead today. If you'll go through the comments area, there 14 00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:27,240 are different displays of the various ministries that help in the foster adoption process and 15 00:01:27,240 --> 00:01:31,200 we'll talk about that just a little bit in the message. You'll hear some great stories, 16 00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:35,920 great testimonies of people in our church that are actually adoptive parents and we 17 00:01:35,920 --> 00:01:41,120 want you to know about the power of adoption. Now I want you to take your Bibles this morning 18 00:01:41,120 --> 00:01:45,280 and turn to the book of Esther today, the book of Esther. The Old Testament book of 19 00:01:45,280 --> 00:01:51,840 Esther is in between the book of Nehemiah and the book of Job. So we want you to know 20 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:56,320 that and if you can't find those two then go to the table of contents if you would and 21 00:01:56,320 --> 00:02:01,680 the table of contents is always so helpful. Today the title of the message is Hope and 22 00:02:01,680 --> 00:02:08,840 Faith and Future, Esther chapter 2 beginning in verse 5. Esther chapter 2 beginning in 23 00:02:08,840 --> 00:02:14,000 verse 5. By the way we have hardback versions of the Bible at the doorways and we always 24 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:18,480 encourage you to pick up one of those if you don't have that with you or your Bible with 25 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:22,680 you, you want to pick that up, that's great. You can use it or you can take it home and 26 00:02:22,680 --> 00:02:26,840 we'll have page numbers on our screens for those different verses as well, make them 27 00:02:26,840 --> 00:02:29,880 easy to find. You won't have to look at the table of contents at least, you'll know what 28 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:34,900 page number it is. So let's stand together as we turn to Esther chapter 2 beginning in 29 00:02:34,900 --> 00:02:41,680 verse 5 and I want to say as we dive into this particular subject, this particular topic 30 00:02:41,680 --> 00:02:47,560 today that the emphasis of the book of Esther and we've been here not too long ago as we 31 00:02:47,560 --> 00:02:52,360 walked through that book but the book of Esther is a topic of how God works in unseen and 32 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:57,880 unheard ways. Now for most of us that's how God works all the time because God doesn't 33 00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:02,840 speak out loud to us and sometimes we don't see how God works and we have to trust that 34 00:03:02,840 --> 00:03:09,040 he's working in unseen and sometimes unspoken ways but the book of Esther is the only book 35 00:03:09,040 --> 00:03:14,480 in the Bible that does not have the name of God in it. It's also the only book where God 36 00:03:14,480 --> 00:03:19,000 is not quoted, where there's not a prophet speaking or there's not someone else saying 37 00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:23,960 the Lord has told us this but it is a book in which you look at the characters in the 38 00:03:23,960 --> 00:03:30,960 book and you realize God is in work in incredible ways in their lives. You can see God all the 39 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:35,240 way through the book of Esther. So let me set the scene for you before we get into the 40 00:03:35,240 --> 00:03:42,240 text. Esther is set during a time when the Jews are in exile to Persia and King Ahasuerus 41 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:48,320 so they have been removed from their homeland and there they are about 450 years or so before 42 00:03:48,320 --> 00:03:54,080 the coming of Christ. They're captive, they're slaves and they're really subject to the whims 43 00:03:54,080 --> 00:04:00,800 of this King Ahasuerus and so that's the situation. King Ahasuerus has deposed his queen for reasons 44 00:04:00,800 --> 00:04:05,120 I'll tell you about in just a few moments and Esther is one of those young women who 45 00:04:05,120 --> 00:04:10,760 has been selected to go and so to speak audition before the king. So many unjust, unfair things 46 00:04:10,760 --> 00:04:15,840 going on here that we won't take time to explain however here she is in the presence of the 47 00:04:15,840 --> 00:04:21,560 king and she's talking with her cousin Mordecai so you'll understand something about the background 48 00:04:21,560 --> 00:04:26,200 when we read these verses. Chapter 2 beginning in verse 5. Now there was at the citadel in 49 00:04:26,200 --> 00:04:31,640 Susa a Jew whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shemai, the son of Kish, 50 00:04:31,640 --> 00:04:36,840 of Benjamin, who had been taken into exile from Jerusalem with the captives that had 51 00:04:36,840 --> 00:04:41,840 been exiled with Jeconiah, king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had 52 00:04:41,840 --> 00:04:47,640 exiled. So if you want to know in a summary form what's just happened, war has happened. 53 00:04:47,640 --> 00:04:52,600 Persia has kidnapped those out of Jerusalem and brought them into exile away from their 54 00:04:52,600 --> 00:04:59,600 homeland in this capital city of Susa. It says in verse 7 he was bringing up Hadassah, 55 00:05:00,760 --> 00:05:05,160 that is Esther, his uncle's daughter, that is Mordecai is doing this, for she had no 56 00:05:05,160 --> 00:05:10,160 father or mother. Now the young lady was beautiful of form and face and when her father and her 57 00:05:10,160 --> 00:05:16,320 mother died Mordecai took her as his own daughter. So it came about when the command and decree 58 00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:20,640 of the king were heard and many young ladies were gathered to the citadel of Susa into 59 00:05:20,640 --> 00:05:26,400 the custody of Hegai, that is Esther was taken to the king's palace into the custody of Hegai 60 00:05:26,400 --> 00:05:30,760 who was in charge of the women. Now the young lady pleased him and found favor with him 61 00:05:30,760 --> 00:05:35,040 so he quickly provided her with cosmetics and food, gave her seven choice maids from 62 00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:40,720 the king's palace and transferred her and her maids to the best place in the harem. 63 00:05:40,720 --> 00:05:45,480 Esther did not make known her people or her kindred, that is she didn't tell them that 64 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:50,560 she was a Jewish girl, for Mordecai had instructed her that she should not make them known. 65 00:05:50,560 --> 00:05:55,160 Every day Mordecai walked back and forth in front of the court of the harem to learn how 66 00:05:55,160 --> 00:06:00,840 Esther was and how she fared. Alright we'll stop there for a moment before we dive into 67 00:06:00,840 --> 00:06:05,880 this message. Father today we're going to take just a piece of this whole book, it's 68 00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:11,400 a part of this whole story and father we're going to look at the amazing adoption that 69 00:06:11,400 --> 00:06:18,600 took place for Esther placed into the care of Mordecai. Father my prayer today that we 70 00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:23,400 would see your redemptive power in the very picture of adoption and certainly in the life 71 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:28,080 of Esther and how you used her in such a big way at that very critical time in Israel's 72 00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:33,360 history. Lord give us eyes to see, a heart to understand and a will to follow you. We 73 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:40,480 ask this in Jesus name and everybody said amen. Please be seated if you would. I love 74 00:06:40,480 --> 00:06:44,920 the book of Esther, I love the Old Testament books where stories are told about people's 75 00:06:44,920 --> 00:06:50,880 lives, I love the narratives. And this is one of those stories that I often say a movie 76 00:06:50,880 --> 00:06:55,560 needs to be made about this and I know there is a movie made about Esther's life but I 77 00:06:55,560 --> 00:06:58,840 think I can make a better one than what I've seen and a movie needs to be made, there's 78 00:06:58,840 --> 00:07:03,560 more spiritual truth to share. But it's such an incredible story of a young woman at a 79 00:07:03,560 --> 00:07:11,160 crossroads in her life and a nation at a crossroads as well. And it's a sensational story because 80 00:07:11,160 --> 00:07:15,960 here's this girl who is virtually homeless until she's adopted by Mordecai and all of 81 00:07:15,960 --> 00:07:23,280 a sudden before too many chapters go by she's now queen of this whole region. And what's 82 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:27,520 amazing and sensational about this story is something is lost as we read through it very 83 00:07:27,520 --> 00:07:33,760 quickly and that is the picture of her adoption by Mordecai. I know people that have read 84 00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:39,360 the whole book of Esther and never really pick up the idea that Mordecai adopted his 85 00:07:39,360 --> 00:07:44,640 younger cousin who is Esther of Hadassah and that really enables the entire story to be 86 00:07:44,640 --> 00:07:51,160 told as it should be told. So here's a young girl that's a victim in the seemingly endless 87 00:07:51,160 --> 00:07:58,280 war between the people who hate the Jewish people, the people who hate Israel and Israel. 88 00:07:58,280 --> 00:08:06,120 Now just for some awareness it's 479 BC specifically, the nation that King Hazris is over is the 89 00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:11,560 land of Persia in biblical times that was its name today is the land of Iran which is 90 00:08:11,560 --> 00:08:17,960 in the news right now. They were known those 2500 years ago for their hatred of the Jewish 91 00:08:17,960 --> 00:08:22,840 people and much is happening in the same way today as a matter of fact if I was preaching 92 00:08:22,840 --> 00:08:28,020 a message about Israel and where she is today and what's going on with that war I might 93 00:08:28,020 --> 00:08:32,880 even start from the book of Esther but that's not the title of this message or the topic. 94 00:08:32,880 --> 00:08:39,580 That's just what's happening. She's in the midst of a war and she's a captive to a nation 95 00:08:39,580 --> 00:08:46,200 that hates her people which is why she doesn't reveal who she is. It's a horrific culture, 96 00:08:46,200 --> 00:08:53,040 it's sexist, it is predatory. So many bad things can happen to a young woman who is 97 00:08:53,040 --> 00:09:00,080 in that culture and if she's not rescued her prospects for the future are dismal. But here's 98 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:05,440 what we find in the book of Esther. We find that God placed Esther in a unique family 99 00:09:05,440 --> 00:09:10,960 and a unique time and an amazing moment of history. Now I want you to see this as we 100 00:09:10,960 --> 00:09:14,960 walk through the book because you won't read this in a verse but what you'll see is behind 101 00:09:14,960 --> 00:09:22,360 the scenes God's unseen hand moving and placing people in the perfect situation for him to 102 00:09:22,360 --> 00:09:29,000 be glorified. Do you know God is a placer? God places people. I want you to say the word 103 00:09:29,000 --> 00:09:34,680 placer. Are you ready? Placer. God is a placer. Say it one more time. God is a placer. We 104 00:09:34,680 --> 00:09:38,680 don't say that in that story. It's not a word we use a lot. But have you ever felt like 105 00:09:38,680 --> 00:09:43,160 God has placed you in a situation and you look around and go, wow, I don't know how 106 00:09:43,160 --> 00:09:48,560 I got here but I know God placed me here. Anybody ever experience that? Let me just 107 00:09:48,560 --> 00:09:55,880 tell you that's the way God works. God is a placer. He puts people in the places that 108 00:09:55,880 --> 00:10:01,560 he wants and you see that all the way through the scripture. God placed Adam and Eve in 109 00:10:01,560 --> 00:10:08,720 the Garden of Eden. God placed the nation Israel into the land of promise. If you're 110 00:10:08,720 --> 00:10:13,760 here as a believer in Jesus Christ, God placed you in this body with gifts and talents and 111 00:10:13,760 --> 00:10:20,240 a heart and a passion to walk with us. He places us in the world to represent him. We 112 00:10:20,240 --> 00:10:24,680 are in the world but we're not of the world. He's placed us here for incredible reason. 113 00:10:24,680 --> 00:10:30,000 He places people and families through birth and he places people and families through 114 00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:35,960 fostering and adoption. I want you to see that today. I want you to see how you placed 115 00:10:35,960 --> 00:10:42,960 this young woman Esther into the family of Mordecai. Now you've heard me, if you've 116 00:10:42,960 --> 00:10:47,160 been around for long, you've heard me tell the story of my belief that God is the ultimate 117 00:10:47,160 --> 00:10:52,960 chess master. That we're just pawns on the chessboard. We have no idea where to go, forward, 118 00:10:52,960 --> 00:10:57,480 backward, sideways, diagonal. We don't know. We don't know the strategy that comes against 119 00:10:57,480 --> 00:11:01,960 us but what we do know is as God moves us into place, he's aware of the future, he's 120 00:11:01,960 --> 00:11:07,280 aware of the path, he's aware of the threats on all sides. God is the ultimate chess master 121 00:11:07,280 --> 00:11:13,120 and the greatest way to view your life is that perspective. He has got this. We don't 122 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:19,360 but he does. And you'll see that in the life of Esther. God has moved her around the board 123 00:11:19,360 --> 00:11:23,920 so to speak. Now I also want you to know as I walk through these points this morning to 124 00:11:23,920 --> 00:11:30,920 realize that there's nothing coincidental in this adoption story or in your life. God 125 00:11:32,400 --> 00:11:39,400 is the God of purpose and significance. Everything he does, he has a reason for it. Isn't that 126 00:11:39,680 --> 00:11:44,220 reassuring? I mean in a chaotic world, in a confusing world, a world where not much 127 00:11:44,220 --> 00:11:49,720 makes sense, isn't it good to know that God always has a purpose? He always has a significance. 128 00:11:49,720 --> 00:11:55,960 So I want to give you some things today coming out of the story of this adoption by Mordecai 129 00:11:55,960 --> 00:12:00,240 of Esther that will bring hope and encouragement to you today. First of all, I want you to 130 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:07,240 notice that adoption brings hope to hopeless situations. Adoption brings hope to hopeless 131 00:12:07,600 --> 00:12:13,200 situations. We start there in verse 7 and the scripture states it very plainly, for 132 00:12:13,200 --> 00:12:19,400 she had no father or mother. And then it clarifies later on in verse 7, when her father and mother 133 00:12:19,400 --> 00:12:26,120 died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter. In other words, to tell the story, it's clear 134 00:12:26,120 --> 00:12:31,040 that she has no mother or father at that moment, but she had a mother and father and they had 135 00:12:31,040 --> 00:12:38,040 died presumably in the war. Presumably in the occupation of the Persian people of Jerusalem 136 00:12:38,040 --> 00:12:43,640 and as they came and invaded Jerusalem and as they took them off to exile, they died 137 00:12:43,640 --> 00:12:48,320 in that process. Now I want you to take a moment and imagine the hopelessness of the 138 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:55,320 situation. I don't want you to view Esther as a quick flyby of a larger book. I want 139 00:12:55,560 --> 00:13:01,520 you to take a moment and think about her as a young woman. Imagine being in exile in a 140 00:13:01,520 --> 00:13:08,000 foreign land, slaves to those that captured you. Take a moment to think about what it 141 00:13:08,000 --> 00:13:13,960 means to be a slave, to have no rights, to absolutely be at the mercy of your captors, 142 00:13:13,960 --> 00:13:20,680 to have to do whatever that person who owned you is a slave required of you. Imagine that 143 00:13:20,680 --> 00:13:25,440 your parents have died and there's no one to protect you, no one to speak up for you, 144 00:13:25,440 --> 00:13:32,440 no one to stand in the gap for you. Imagine now being a young girl all alone without protection 145 00:13:32,640 --> 00:13:37,520 in this predatory kind of culture. All you have to do is read the first chapter of the 146 00:13:37,520 --> 00:13:42,480 book of Esther. King Ahasuerus and all he's doing and you know everybody else in the nation 147 00:13:42,480 --> 00:13:48,020 is living in that kind of immorality, in that kind of mindset. If you went back and read 148 00:13:48,020 --> 00:13:54,200 chapter one, King Ahasuerus has called a big party to take place and he's required of his 149 00:13:54,200 --> 00:14:01,120 queen, Queen Vashti to dance in a seductive way in front of all the soldiers and the captains 150 00:14:01,120 --> 00:14:06,120 that have gathered for this party. Now Queen Vashti must be a person of character because 151 00:14:06,120 --> 00:14:12,560 she absolutely refuses to dance for the men and in response King Ahasuerus is embarrassed 152 00:14:12,560 --> 00:14:18,160 by her response and the fact that she dared disobey him that he deposed her as queen 153 00:14:18,160 --> 00:14:23,120 and said I know what I'll do, I'll find another queen, I'll find someone who will do what 154 00:14:23,120 --> 00:14:30,120 I ask them to do. That's the leader of this particular culture. Can you imagine this young 155 00:14:30,120 --> 00:14:37,040 girl unprotected, young and without anyone to speak up for her, can you imagine what 156 00:14:37,040 --> 00:14:44,040 her life might have been like without intervention? Can you imagine how she would be exploited, 157 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:52,000 perhaps become a prostitute or worse in every way used up? It's a hopeless situation. You 158 00:14:52,000 --> 00:14:57,280 know the word hopeless is one of those words that we don't use a great deal but hopelessness 159 00:14:57,280 --> 00:15:03,520 is the word that we do use when we no longer believe a situation can be redeemed. When 160 00:15:03,520 --> 00:15:10,520 we no longer believe that this situation with its circumstances by itself can be redeemed. 161 00:15:10,760 --> 00:15:17,760 When we say hopelessness we mean somebody needs to step up and rescue somebody else. 162 00:15:17,760 --> 00:15:23,760 There needs to be someone to stand in the gap, to intervene, to bring change to that 163 00:15:23,760 --> 00:15:30,080 circumstance which is exactly what this picture gives us today. It's a hopeless situation. 164 00:15:30,080 --> 00:15:35,760 Now enter the man named Mordecai. Actually in the scripture Mordecai is mentioned in 165 00:15:35,760 --> 00:15:42,200 the book of Esther before. Esther is really given detail as to her life. He's a compassionate, 166 00:15:42,200 --> 00:15:49,200 he's a God-fearing Jewish man who is actually her older cousin and knows of the death of 167 00:15:49,320 --> 00:15:56,320 her parents. And God divinely, here's his word, he places her into his custody under 168 00:15:57,280 --> 00:16:02,040 the compassionate care of his older cousin who is doing the right thing and he adopts 169 00:16:02,040 --> 00:16:12,840 her as his own daughter. I love that line. He considers her his own daughter. How many 170 00:16:12,840 --> 00:16:16,120 fathers in the room have daughters? Would you raise your hand if you're a father and 171 00:16:16,120 --> 00:16:20,320 you have a daughter? Would you raise your hand? I have three daughters and three sons 172 00:16:20,320 --> 00:16:24,520 and I'm not saying I wouldn't come and rescue my sons but I'm saying I would absolutely 173 00:16:24,520 --> 00:16:31,320 come and rescue every one of my daughters. I consider it a personal charge in life to 174 00:16:31,320 --> 00:16:34,960 protect them from everything they need to be protected from. I would do anything, go 175 00:16:34,960 --> 00:16:39,800 any distance, do anything I would have to do to keep them safe and to keep them going 176 00:16:39,800 --> 00:16:44,640 in the direction they need to go in. My favorite movies are daddy rescue movies where they 177 00:16:44,640 --> 00:16:49,160 rescue the daughters. You know those movies, I've mentioned those before, no need to bring 178 00:16:49,160 --> 00:16:56,160 them up again. Something goes on in the heart of a good father towards his daughter. And 179 00:16:56,160 --> 00:17:03,160 Mordecai, the Bible says, considered Esther as his own daughter. And everywhere in the 180 00:17:03,160 --> 00:17:09,360 story you've got amazing depictions and interactions and conversations where he's watching out 181 00:17:09,360 --> 00:17:13,560 for her, where he's listening to what's going on, where he's shepherding her in every way 182 00:17:13,560 --> 00:17:20,120 he possibly can. And by the way, that's just what foster and adoptive parents do, what 183 00:17:20,120 --> 00:17:26,120 Mordecai is doing. Now certainly I'm not saying that birth parents don't do that. I'm saying 184 00:17:26,120 --> 00:17:33,120 that every foster parent, every adoptive parent has this heart of Mordecai who wants to show 185 00:17:33,280 --> 00:17:38,960 compassion towards someone in need. And by the way, the Bible is filled with the abominations 186 00:17:38,960 --> 00:17:44,560 from God that we are to pay attention to those in great need. In fact, God as a father says 187 00:17:44,560 --> 00:17:49,840 I care about those that are in such a need. Let me just kind of go back and look at some 188 00:17:49,840 --> 00:17:56,840 scriptures with you. In Psalm 149, verse, 146 rather, verse nine, there's a great passage 189 00:17:57,160 --> 00:18:01,100 that kind of reflects the heart of God here. And here's what it says. It says the Lord 190 00:18:01,100 --> 00:18:08,100 protects the strangers. He supports the fatherless and the widow, but he thwarts the way of the 191 00:18:08,200 --> 00:18:11,280 wicked. You're going to see this play out in the life of Esther, but this is just the 192 00:18:11,280 --> 00:18:18,280 heart of God, the compassion of God. Now God's compassion is not just an objective, standalone 193 00:18:18,280 --> 00:18:25,280 compassion. God's compassion is often exercised through people who show compassion. In this 194 00:18:25,280 --> 00:18:31,720 case, Mordecai, this adoptive father, and in our emphasis today, the foster parents 195 00:18:31,720 --> 00:18:38,120 and the adoptive parents of children who are in need. Then there's Psalm 31. We often quote 196 00:18:38,120 --> 00:18:44,240 this Psalm when, or rather, Proverb 31 when we talk about speaking up with the unborn. 197 00:18:44,240 --> 00:18:48,260 And here's what it says. Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all the unfortunate 198 00:18:48,260 --> 00:18:52,840 open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the afflicted and needy. So 199 00:18:52,840 --> 00:18:58,040 this is actually a command to God fearing people, God following people to speak up for 200 00:18:58,040 --> 00:19:03,380 those that cannot speak for themselves. They may be in horrific circumstances like Esther 201 00:19:03,380 --> 00:19:09,480 was and like others are, and were to speak up on their behalf. Then there's just a great 202 00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:15,120 account of Jesus interacting with the disciples about little children that have come to him. 203 00:19:15,120 --> 00:19:19,560 You can't get a better picture of the compassion of God than Jesus saying to the disciples, 204 00:19:19,560 --> 00:19:25,600 whoever receives one such child in my name receives me. If you want to know what God 205 00:19:25,600 --> 00:19:30,680 thinks about children, look right there at the expression of God in the flesh about the 206 00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:36,520 little children that are coming unto him. James chapter 1 verse 27, another great, great 207 00:19:36,520 --> 00:19:41,840 verse to the church of Jesus. James in his bold and straightforward way says it like 208 00:19:41,840 --> 00:19:47,880 this, pure and undefiled religion in the sight of God and our father is this to visit orphans 209 00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:55,120 and widows and their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world. What a command. 210 00:19:55,120 --> 00:20:01,920 The church cannot ignore widows, orphans. We have to come along beside them and around 211 00:20:01,920 --> 00:20:08,320 them and help them in every way that we can possibly help. In recent months, I've met 212 00:20:08,320 --> 00:20:13,920 some pretty incredible people as we've begun to embark on talking about an adoption and 213 00:20:13,920 --> 00:20:19,400 foster ministry. I've met people that are like Mordecai, people who have responded in 214 00:20:19,400 --> 00:20:25,920 these ways to the biblical call to compassion. What they do is they see hopeless situations 215 00:20:25,920 --> 00:20:30,120 in terms of children that have been placed up for adoption and they're willing to step 216 00:20:30,120 --> 00:20:35,640 in the gap. They're willing to pray through this and bring themselves and allow themselves 217 00:20:35,640 --> 00:20:40,840 to be brought to a place of conviction and they really embark on a spiritual journey, 218 00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:45,840 a financial journey and certainly a physical journey, an extraordinary effort to get to 219 00:20:45,840 --> 00:20:51,680 the place where they can make a decision to foster or adopt a child. Even though sometimes 220 00:20:51,680 --> 00:20:56,280 the crowd around them will say it may never work, you may not know what you're getting 221 00:20:56,280 --> 00:21:00,400 into, sometimes there are all those negative voices and then they sense this conviction 222 00:21:00,400 --> 00:21:06,720 from God and they take the step forward. You've got to admire people of courage and conviction 223 00:21:06,720 --> 00:21:14,080 who do that. Amen? Are you with me this morning? Some time ago, the couple that goes to our 224 00:21:14,080 --> 00:21:20,720 church came up to me and handed me a long letter and that letter told a story. They 225 00:21:20,720 --> 00:21:27,680 were aware of a child in their not immediate family but nearby family and this child was 226 00:21:27,680 --> 00:21:32,480 in need through the dysfunction of her family and this husband and wife were kneeling right 227 00:21:32,480 --> 00:21:37,760 over here during a Jericho prayer time years ago. We've been doing this for years and 228 00:21:37,760 --> 00:21:44,040 in that prayer time they felt the Lord lead them to step up and adopt this young girl 229 00:21:44,040 --> 00:21:47,640 and it was just in that prayer time that they began to have that conviction and heard the 230 00:21:47,640 --> 00:21:53,240 call of God and they stepped forward to do that and that's exactly what took place and 231 00:21:53,240 --> 00:21:58,840 their story unfolded in a beautiful powerful way which is happening today. It's incredible 232 00:21:58,840 --> 00:22:04,360 what God does in people's lives when they surrender themselves to do that and I've 233 00:22:04,360 --> 00:22:09,000 heard these stories, these are amazing stories. It's really interesting that in all these 234 00:22:09,000 --> 00:22:17,160 stories every story that I've heard recently has a phone call moment, a phone call moment 235 00:22:17,160 --> 00:22:23,200 where they've done all the prep work, adopted parents have prepared and prayed and persevered 236 00:22:23,200 --> 00:22:27,960 and waited and waited and waited. They've been on a spiritual journey, a physical journey, 237 00:22:27,960 --> 00:22:31,680 a psychological journey, they've got their houses already, they've got their homes and 238 00:22:31,680 --> 00:22:36,640 mines already and finally the day arrives where they get a phone call and it's a shocking 239 00:22:36,640 --> 00:22:40,200 kind of thing even though they've prepared and that phone call person on the other end 240 00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:43,800 of the phone says come get your child and all of a sudden it all comes rushing back 241 00:22:43,800 --> 00:22:50,480 to them oh okay this is the moment that I've been preparing for and that phone call means 242 00:22:50,480 --> 00:22:56,120 all the legal steps have taken place, all the money has been raised, it means the details 243 00:22:56,120 --> 00:23:01,960 are all taken care of and it's time for the new beginning in that child's life and it's 244 00:23:01,960 --> 00:23:07,760 time really for a new chapter on the part of these parents like in Mordecai's life, 245 00:23:07,760 --> 00:23:17,200 like in Esther's life, change is on the horizon and hope has dawned. Adoption brings hope 246 00:23:17,200 --> 00:23:23,160 so adoption also brings faith to the next generation. I see that in the life of Esther. 247 00:23:23,160 --> 00:23:28,120 Now as we started this text we started in verse 5 which gives a little bit of the background 248 00:23:28,120 --> 00:23:35,120 of Mordecai. Notice what it says again now there was that the citadel of Susa a Jew whose 249 00:23:35,120 --> 00:23:41,160 name was Mordecai the son of Jair the son of Shemai the son of Kish of Benjamin and 250 00:23:41,160 --> 00:23:49,800 right there you have the history of Mordecai. This history is Jewish history it is replete 251 00:23:49,800 --> 00:23:57,140 with and full of stories of how God has worked in powerful ways to protect the Jewish people. 252 00:23:57,140 --> 00:24:02,880 So we know this about Mordecai he was a descendant of Saul and the Talmud identifies him as a 253 00:24:02,880 --> 00:24:07,400 prophet even though he wasn't speaking as a prophet during this time he was known as 254 00:24:07,400 --> 00:24:15,080 a prophet this man knew the ways of God. He knew how God had worked in the past he knew 255 00:24:15,080 --> 00:24:22,280 how God leads how God rescues how God redeems he knew about God. Now the way the Jewish 256 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:27,600 people passed on their faith and their awareness of history was by what we know as oral tradition 257 00:24:27,600 --> 00:24:32,180 they shared with the next generation at the dinner table so to speak and at the festivals 258 00:24:32,180 --> 00:24:38,160 and feasts of Israel here's what Jehovah Almighty has done in our history here's why we know 259 00:24:38,160 --> 00:24:43,960 we can trust the Lord our God here's how we know that. And so Esther would have heard 260 00:24:43,960 --> 00:24:48,520 from her parents first of all for however long they lived and now she's hearing from 261 00:24:48,520 --> 00:24:57,840 Mordecai faith is being passed from one generation to the next. She's going to need it because 262 00:24:57,840 --> 00:25:05,160 she's going to be the queen of a pagan wicked ruler. She's going to need every ounce of 263 00:25:05,160 --> 00:25:09,680 faith her parents could have imparted or that Mordecai could impart. She's going to need 264 00:25:09,680 --> 00:25:14,520 every ounce of faith that history could have provided her but she was given that faith 265 00:25:14,520 --> 00:25:19,040 and it's really remarkable to see how it all unfolds. In fact when I read the story of 266 00:25:19,040 --> 00:25:24,440 Mordecai and Esther I thought they have so much to teach us about passing faith on to 267 00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:29,400 the next generation. Can you think about this for a moment? We don't know what the next 268 00:25:29,400 --> 00:25:34,800 generation is going to face in America or in the world but it's not looking real optimistic 269 00:25:34,800 --> 00:25:40,280 if you ask me. How do we prepare them for that? And the way we prepare them for that 270 00:25:40,280 --> 00:25:47,920 is by their faith in an Almighty God who rises above the ups and downs of a nation or a world. 271 00:25:47,920 --> 00:25:54,020 Here's this young woman faith is being passed on to her and the reason we know that is even 272 00:25:54,020 --> 00:25:58,240 though the name of God is not mentioned and even though there is no command from God in 273 00:25:58,240 --> 00:26:05,440 the book of Esther so to speak you see faith being reflected in their conversation. So 274 00:26:05,440 --> 00:26:09,720 Esther realizes by the time she's a queen that there's a wicked man named Haman who 275 00:26:09,720 --> 00:26:15,880 wants them all dead. All the Jews are his target. He wants to completely exterminate 276 00:26:15,880 --> 00:26:21,800 them and the only way she can really intervene is to have an unrequested audience before 277 00:26:21,800 --> 00:26:25,840 the king and that day and time even if you're a queen you can't just walk into the king's 278 00:26:25,840 --> 00:26:31,000 chambers and say can we talk? That's not how it worked back then. If you went into the 279 00:26:31,000 --> 00:26:37,740 chambers without an invitation you might be put to death. And so the whole conversation 280 00:26:37,740 --> 00:26:43,640 between Mordecai and Esther was how will you get word to the king that wicked Haman wants 281 00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:49,600 to put us to death? How are you going to do that? And Mordecai says to her in Esther chapter 282 00:26:49,600 --> 00:26:54,480 4 verse 14 it's reflecting faith all the way through. If you remain silent at this time 283 00:26:54,480 --> 00:26:58,720 relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place. He's recognizing 284 00:26:58,720 --> 00:27:03,920 the sovereignty of God right there. If it's not you God will raise up somebody else and 285 00:27:03,920 --> 00:27:10,680 you and your father's house will perish and who knows whether you have not attained royalty 286 00:27:10,680 --> 00:27:17,320 for such a time as this. Who knows that God has placed you in this position at this moment 287 00:27:17,320 --> 00:27:22,740 at this time in this history so that you can speak up. And what does Esther say? She says 288 00:27:22,740 --> 00:27:27,440 maybe the most famous lines in the book of Esther. She says so I'll do this you fast 289 00:27:27,440 --> 00:27:31,360 and pray for me for three days and I'm going to go into the king and here's what she says 290 00:27:31,360 --> 00:27:40,360 she says and if I die I die. Now that's either foolishness or faith. But we know it's faith. 291 00:27:40,360 --> 00:27:48,240 You see what's happened in Mordecai's shepherding of Esther is he has helped her know that the 292 00:27:48,240 --> 00:27:55,800 most high God the God of Israel Yahweh Jehovah will rescue them. And she's positioned to 293 00:27:55,800 --> 00:28:03,000 do that very thing to intervene on behalf of her nation. God has placed her in this 294 00:28:03,000 --> 00:28:08,640 place. There's a woman that goes to our church many of you know Deanna D'ar she's in our 295 00:28:08,640 --> 00:28:13,760 choir she sings on our stage from time to time. I interviewed for her for a podcast 296 00:28:13,760 --> 00:28:20,360 with her some months ago and it's on our website where I asked her about her history of being 297 00:28:20,360 --> 00:28:27,360 adopted. And in that interview she talked about her adoptive parents and the fact that 298 00:28:27,360 --> 00:28:33,320 they introduced her to faith in Jesus Christ. And she just talked about the incredible thing 299 00:28:33,320 --> 00:28:40,040 that God did in letting her be placed for adoption and letting those parents step in 300 00:28:40,040 --> 00:28:44,600 and actually receive her in adoption and share faith with her. And later on she went back 301 00:28:44,600 --> 00:28:49,680 and met her biological mom realizing if I had been raised in that home I would not have 302 00:28:49,680 --> 00:28:57,080 known Christ as early or in the same way that I know him now. In other words from her perspective 303 00:28:57,080 --> 00:29:02,600 she sees adoption from the perspective of God and placing her in the perfect home at 304 00:29:02,600 --> 00:29:08,000 the perfect time for her to come to faith in Jesus Christ. Now Deanna is a high school 305 00:29:08,000 --> 00:29:14,760 teacher and she influences many hundreds and thousands of kids towards Jesus in her ministry 306 00:29:14,760 --> 00:29:19,480 that she has in those schools. Adoption really does bring faith to the next generation but 307 00:29:19,480 --> 00:29:26,960 it does something else. Adoption brings the future to many. The future to many. Now if 308 00:29:26,960 --> 00:29:31,520 you know anything about the book of Esther you know where I'm going with this. Israel, 309 00:29:31,520 --> 00:29:37,320 the people of God are rescued. It's an amazing story. There are all kinds of ups and downs 310 00:29:37,320 --> 00:29:43,840 in this story. There's this crazy crazy but not coincidental string of events where only 311 00:29:43,840 --> 00:29:48,820 God could have orchestrated the things to happen in the book of Esther but eventually 312 00:29:48,820 --> 00:29:55,440 led to the hanging of Haman and led to the giving of permission by King Ahasuerus to 313 00:29:55,440 --> 00:30:01,640 the Jewish people to defend themselves and they do and they do it well. So in Esther 314 00:30:01,640 --> 00:30:07,680 chapter 9 verse 1 we read this. On the day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain 315 00:30:07,680 --> 00:30:13,480 mastery over them it was turned to the contrary so that the Jews themselves gained the mastery 316 00:30:13,480 --> 00:30:19,200 over those who hated them. 2500 years ago that's the statement that was made by how 317 00:30:19,200 --> 00:30:25,160 God intervened. If you want to know how I pray for Israel I pray for them like this. 318 00:30:25,160 --> 00:30:28,600 Right there. So that those that hate Israel will all of a sudden realize they have no 319 00:30:28,600 --> 00:30:33,680 mastery to carry that out but that the Jewish people would be protected. God does this over 320 00:30:33,680 --> 00:30:38,860 and over and over for the Jewish people to just read the Old Testament to see what happens 321 00:30:38,860 --> 00:30:44,080 time after time. But I want you to see one thing with clarity. Don't let what I've said 322 00:30:44,080 --> 00:30:48,920 make all these other things get lost in those words. Here's what I want you to see. Esther's 323 00:30:48,920 --> 00:30:55,920 adoption and her faith along with how God allowed her to become queen brought a future 324 00:30:56,960 --> 00:31:03,960 to all of the Jewish people in that city. The rescue was significant. Targeted for extermination 325 00:31:05,720 --> 00:31:11,080 they instead see God saw God turn the tables on the whole picture. Now let me just say 326 00:31:11,080 --> 00:31:16,340 this to you today. In any scenario adoption brings a future to many that would not be 327 00:31:16,340 --> 00:31:23,340 possible without the compassion and dedicated acts of adoptive parents or foster parents. 328 00:31:23,960 --> 00:31:28,440 I told you about some families that I've gotten to know recently. We actually have a video 329 00:31:28,440 --> 00:31:34,320 that introduces three families and just their journey for fostering and adoption. And I 330 00:31:34,320 --> 00:31:39,000 want you to see what we've said today the background behind that the prayer the conviction 331 00:31:39,000 --> 00:31:46,000 the provision the open doors and watch what the result is. Early on I knew I wanted to 332 00:31:47,200 --> 00:31:54,200 be a mom. Ever since a student pastor I had adopted I knew I would like to have an adopted 333 00:31:55,800 --> 00:32:00,000 child of my own. We were talking about how we wanted to have kids and you know what our 334 00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:05,000 family would look like and I mentioned to him that I was interested in adoption and 335 00:32:05,000 --> 00:32:12,000 his response was I've always been interested in it too. I started being interested in foster 336 00:32:12,840 --> 00:32:19,840 and adoption when I knew I could offer a stable loving home to a kid who needs that. The Lord 337 00:32:25,560 --> 00:32:32,560 just guided and directed us step by step to the point where we were you know a licensed 338 00:32:32,560 --> 00:32:39,560 foster family. So we have Wren who is 10 years old she's in fifth grade and a couple years 339 00:32:40,080 --> 00:32:44,680 after she was born we had a miscarriage. We just felt like God was continuing to show 340 00:32:44,680 --> 00:32:51,680 us that the next child for us it would be through adoption. We were about to have a 341 00:32:52,160 --> 00:32:58,080 discussion with our adoption agency about what steps we take moving forward and we get 342 00:32:58,080 --> 00:33:03,840 a call to come pick up Mila. We picked her up at the hospital and walked out with a baby 343 00:33:03,840 --> 00:33:10,840 girl and she's a riot. All gas no break and never stops moving and never stops cracking 344 00:33:13,080 --> 00:33:19,320 jokes. She's a delight. When we were ready to try for a second child and we went through 345 00:33:19,320 --> 00:33:25,560 the same exact protocol after quite a few months and a whole lot of money my doctor 346 00:33:25,560 --> 00:33:32,560 just said it's not working. Honestly thought God had forgotten my family and it just so 347 00:33:33,320 --> 00:33:40,520 happened that our friend Beth Wright who is another adoptive mom she and I were talking 348 00:33:40,520 --> 00:33:43,960 and she looked at me dead in the face and she said Amanda God has not forgotten your 349 00:33:43,960 --> 00:33:50,600 family and that for me as sweetly as she said it was the truth that I needed. When we got 350 00:33:50,600 --> 00:33:56,000 the phone call the lady's like hey is this Amanda? Yes ma'am how can I help you? And 351 00:33:56,000 --> 00:34:03,000 she said well you have a daughter and I just stopped breathing for a second and I just 352 00:34:03,000 --> 00:34:08,120 thought oh my gosh it's it. You have a daughter? Wait a minute she's here she's a she oh my 353 00:34:08,120 --> 00:34:15,120 gosh she's here like what? And she goes yeah you have a daughter when can you get here? 354 00:34:15,120 --> 00:34:22,120 My family doesn't look like every other family. I am a single mom of three of the best kids. 355 00:34:25,920 --> 00:34:32,920 I have Sean he's 16 years old and Nevaeh is 14 and Callie is 12. Even though we don't 356 00:34:33,920 --> 00:34:40,920 have the same DNA she is as much mine as Ren is. She is 100% right. There was not a shadow 357 00:34:40,920 --> 00:34:47,920 of a doubt that little girl wasn't meant for us. She fit so perfectly. Main reason of foster 358 00:34:48,280 --> 00:34:53,280 adoption matters is because it's the hands and the feet of Jesus. The thing about the 359 00:34:53,280 --> 00:34:59,160 church family it is adoptive in its own nature. And we get to be you know sons and daughters 360 00:34:59,160 --> 00:35:05,680 of God as if we were brothers and sisters of Christ. Don't let fear keep you from doing 361 00:35:05,680 --> 00:35:11,560 what God's called you to do. Some of the most fearful times in my life is when I've done 362 00:35:11,560 --> 00:35:15,960 really hard things that God's wanted me to do. There are so many things that you can 363 00:35:15,960 --> 00:35:22,960 do to bless those adoptive families. As families step into fostering and adoption we as a church 364 00:35:23,680 --> 00:35:28,640 have to wrap our arms around them. There's lots of ways to get involved and nothing is 365 00:35:28,640 --> 00:35:35,640 too big or too small. Let's celebrate that together for just a moment. Would you do that? 366 00:35:39,240 --> 00:35:46,240 Wow. Some of those people on the video you know them well. Come along behind them and 367 00:35:46,360 --> 00:35:51,360 just love on them and let them know that you see them as the courageous compassionate people 368 00:35:51,360 --> 00:35:56,380 that they really are. What a great thing to be able to do. Here you have this biblical 369 00:35:56,380 --> 00:36:03,160 picture of adoption. You have these real life stories of how adoptions take place and how 370 00:36:03,160 --> 00:36:08,120 incredibly important it really is. And I want to ask you a couple of questions today. Do 371 00:36:08,120 --> 00:36:13,800 you see how this works? Do you understand how it is a huge decision that people make 372 00:36:13,800 --> 00:36:20,440 but a compassionate decision that really reflects the love and compassion of Jesus Christ. And 373 00:36:20,440 --> 00:36:25,680 I want you to see also how God can use a foster and adoption ministry in our church. It's 374 00:36:25,680 --> 00:36:29,360 something that's emerging, something that's beginning but something that's very, very, 375 00:36:29,360 --> 00:36:34,160 very exciting. And that's why we're compassionate, we're passionate about it. But let me tell 376 00:36:34,160 --> 00:36:41,160 you that the other side of this picture that depicts the need. You may not know this but 377 00:36:41,480 --> 00:36:46,360 if adoption doesn't take place there are children who are placed for adoption who are never 378 00:36:46,360 --> 00:36:53,360 really adopted to parents. According to Buckner Children's Home more than 7,000 children await 379 00:36:53,360 --> 00:36:59,920 adoption in the state of Texas alone. More than 120,000 nationwide. Their parents' rights 380 00:36:59,920 --> 00:37:04,080 have already been terminated. In other words, it's been determined that these parents cannot 381 00:37:04,080 --> 00:37:09,400 raise them and so they are now waiting for adoptive parents and they have not yet been 382 00:37:09,400 --> 00:37:16,400 adopted. If never adopted, 1,000 children will age out of the system every year. If 383 00:37:16,400 --> 00:37:23,400 they age out of the system, nearly half will become either homeless or incarcerated. Seven 384 00:37:25,160 --> 00:37:32,160 of ten young women who age out of the system at the age of 18 are pregnant by the age of 385 00:37:32,160 --> 00:37:39,160 21. And I look at that and I think 7,000 kids. There are more than 7,000 evangelical churches 386 00:37:39,160 --> 00:37:44,160 in the state of Texas, way more. What would happen if churches simply had a burden and 387 00:37:44,160 --> 00:37:49,560 a passion to help being part of the solution and stand behind parents who are willing to 388 00:37:49,560 --> 00:37:54,200 do this fostering and this adopting and for the church to support them and love them and 389 00:37:54,200 --> 00:37:59,320 encourage them and make it possible. The kingdom of God can meet the need that culture has 390 00:37:59,320 --> 00:38:06,320 created if we will and that's why we emphasize what we're emphasizing today because we can 391 00:38:06,320 --> 00:38:11,200 and should do everything we possibly can. Whether God's calls you to be an adoptive 392 00:38:11,200 --> 00:38:16,960 parent or a foster parent or not, everybody can do something to help make sure that this 393 00:38:16,960 --> 00:38:23,080 process works well. You know, one of the great things about the story of Esther, the subject 394 00:38:23,080 --> 00:38:29,040 of adoption, is the reality that each one of us, every single person in this room, if 395 00:38:29,040 --> 00:38:34,060 you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you too have been adopted. You've been adopted by 396 00:38:34,060 --> 00:38:40,120 God the Father. Now think about that for just a moment. Think about what that means. Romans 397 00:38:40,120 --> 00:38:45,480 chapter 8 verse 15 says, for you've not been given a slavery leading to fear again, but 398 00:38:45,480 --> 00:38:53,620 you've received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out Abba Father. 399 00:38:53,620 --> 00:38:58,600 Adoption is an illustration of really what happens to every one of us who come to faith 400 00:38:58,600 --> 00:39:02,560 in Jesus Christ. Today I want you to think about something. I also want you to take a 401 00:39:02,560 --> 00:39:07,440 little bit of a walk. It won't take you long. You won't have a whole lot more steps on your 402 00:39:07,440 --> 00:39:14,160 step counter, but you will walk away far more educated about what adoption and the process 403 00:39:14,160 --> 00:39:19,360 is all about. In our lobby today, in our commons area, we have set up at least six stations 404 00:39:19,360 --> 00:39:25,720 and those six stations have representatives behind them for the different ministries that 405 00:39:25,720 --> 00:39:31,080 are available for fostering and adopting parents. For example, there's MCWC, which we have for 406 00:39:31,080 --> 00:39:38,400 where a young woman comes and gets counseling about her unplanned pregnancy. Often they come 407 00:39:38,400 --> 00:39:45,260 to faith in Jesus and more often than that, they actually keep their child in the sense 408 00:39:45,260 --> 00:39:50,960 of having the child instead of aborting the child. I think we've celebrated close to 40,000 409 00:39:50,960 --> 00:39:56,080 kids that have been basically rescued and born because of MCWC. I celebrate that all 410 00:39:56,080 --> 00:40:04,680 the time and I know you do as well. Amen. 40,000. A lot of kids. There's Embrace Grace represented 411 00:40:04,680 --> 00:40:09,400 in our commons area. That's where moms come in who are at the point of decision and they 412 00:40:09,400 --> 00:40:14,960 are discipled and lovingly led through the decision process and many of them end up keeping their 413 00:40:14,960 --> 00:40:20,360 child or placing them for adoption. It's an incredible ministry. There are adoption agencies 414 00:40:20,360 --> 00:40:23,960 out there. There are fostering agencies out there, but the important thing is that the 415 00:40:23,960 --> 00:40:33,600 body of Christ become aware of how we can come alongside foster and adoptive parents, how we can come alongside 416 00:40:33,600 --> 00:40:38,680 the kids that have such a huge need of seeing the compassion of God. No contribution 417 00:40:38,680 --> 00:40:45,520 of time, talent and prayer is too small. Everyone can do something that first you have to know. 418 00:40:45,520 --> 00:40:51,600 So do a favor for me. Walk through the commons, browse through, take just a few moments and 419 00:40:51,600 --> 00:40:57,320 you'll walk away with a sense of how God is working in this whole picture of adoption. 420 00:40:57,320 --> 00:41:02,280 I've got three invitations for you or more today. Number one, if you would like to talk 421 00:41:02,280 --> 00:41:07,600 to someone about putting your faith in Jesus Christ, today our decision station is open. 422 00:41:07,600 --> 00:41:11,880 I talked at the end of this message about what it meant to be adopted as sons and daughters 423 00:41:11,880 --> 00:41:16,280 by God the Father. It means putting your faith and trust in Christ. We really want to talk 424 00:41:16,280 --> 00:41:20,000 to you about that. Number two, I ask you if you're a guest to come to guest reception 425 00:41:20,000 --> 00:41:25,480 room right outside the center exit doors and out into the hallway. Glass-den room there, 426 00:41:25,480 --> 00:41:31,040 I'll be there to talk to you about the church and about ways you can connect. Thirdly, I 427 00:41:31,040 --> 00:41:35,280 invite you to come back. Next week is a big mission Sunday week and fourthly, I invite 428 00:41:35,280 --> 00:41:40,840 you to go through the commons area on your way out today. All right? Thank you so much 429 00:41:40,840 --> 00:41:47,560 for being here today. Let's stand together as we close out in prayer. Father, I am so 430 00:41:47,560 --> 00:41:54,560 grateful for the story of Esther. Grateful for the living illustration of adoption. Grateful 431 00:41:55,920 --> 00:42:01,600 that you, Father, adopt us as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ. Grateful for people 432 00:42:01,600 --> 00:42:08,600 who have already made this journey of physically adopting a son or a daughter into their home. 433 00:42:08,600 --> 00:42:15,240 Father, I thank you for the ministries that serve to that end to help people know and 434 00:42:15,240 --> 00:42:21,640 take steps to support this. Lord, today I pray for those 7,000 children that are yet 435 00:42:21,640 --> 00:42:27,640 unadopted, yet not placed. And Father, I ask that you move in a powerful way to help that 436 00:42:27,640 --> 00:42:32,720 take place. Help us as believers to live out the compassion that you've shown to us. We 437 00:42:32,720 --> 00:42:47,720 ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. God bless you. Have a wonderful Lord's Day.