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Welcome to the Southside Church Podcast. Weekly content that inspires all of us to follow Jesus. Join us each week for a message from one of our fantastic communicators that provide practical ways to grow our faith, challenge ourselves, and to love others more. And now, this week's message.

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So are there things in your life that you would say um you would love to do but are a little bit risky to do? Let's let's go. Make some noise if you would want to do this, but it's too risky. Um let's let's go. Riding a motorcycle. You could do it. Uh Dr. Laney, that's not fair. Y'all ride motorcycles. No. Um what about bungee jumping? You'd love to do it, but it feels a little too no, okay, no. Few fans here. Um, what about eating black beans? Woo! There we go. Yeah, no, I don't know why black beans are even created. They feel risky. Um what about what about four-wheeling on a beach? I think some of y'all could do that. Okay, here's the last one. Skydiving. Right? But if you're anything like me, you're thinking skydiving could be really, really, really fun. But then you get on the plane and then they open the door and you're standing there, and you're thinking. Oh, there's nothing there to catch me besides the ground. So maybe, maybe I could do it, but if I do it, I'm thinking. Even thinking about it now gets me like really excited, but also my palms are probably sweating, and it's not because I'm holding August, it's because it's just like the idea of actually going skydiving feels too risky. But here's the thing about risk risk isn't just about um just just about our adventures. There's a lot of things in our lives that are risky. And some of the things that are risky for us are not because they're just adventures, it's because, and hear me when I say that, it this it gets us out of our comfort zone. It will require us to get a little bit uncomfortable in order to do it. I mean, think about it. Have you ever been sitting around a group of friends at dinner or maybe at coffee or you're just sitting, hanging out, and they start to have a conversation about something that feels a little uncomfortable or feels as if they shouldn't say it at all. And there's a part of you you want to say something, but you're like, no, it's too risky to say something right now. What if I embarrass them? What if they embarrass me? What if our friendship is ended? Or maybe for some of you, for my students in the room, have you ever have you ever seen someone getting bullied? And you start to think, okay, I see that happening. Maybe I should say something, but it's too risky. Well, because here's the thing about risk: there's too much at stake. You have to do something. It feels like it is too much at stake. And here's what it is at stake, we could lose our friends. And if the bullying is happening not only at school, or maybe the conversations, the awkward conversations are happening at work, it's it's almost as if, okay, if I say something at work, I may lose my friends. I may lose my job. And in this climate for employment, it can be hard to find a new one. So I I'm I I probably shouldn't say anything. Because it's too risky. Maybe for you it isn't bullying, or maybe for you it isn't necessarily um something that's happening at work, or maybe it's someone close to you in your family. Or maybe you've never seen anyone stand up for anyone else. And so it's hard for you to come to an understanding, to take the step and stand up for others. Because here's the thing it is risky to stand up for others. But there's this woman in scripture, in Old Testament scripture, uh, by the name of Esther. Esther decided that it was worth the risk to stand up for others. And we're gonna take a quick look at her story just briefly here. So um, if you hadn't had the chance to read Esther, I recommend you do it. It is a phenomenal, a phenomenal read. And you it's it's so much wisdom and so much insight that can be gained from that. Okay, so here's what's happening. There are four four main people in this narrative. You've got Esther, you've got Haman, you've got King Xerxes, and then you've got Mordecai. Now, Mordecai and and and Esther, they're related, they're family. And the interesting thing about Mordecai is he acts almost if, if you're reading it, he he acts as if he's almost her father because he's given so much wisdom to her. So, the king. The king decides that, hey, he, for whatever reason, we won't unpack that today, but for whatever reason, he kind of decides that he no longer wants to be with his queen. So he holds, for for the sake of our conversation today, he holds basically a pageant to find his new queen. So after some time has passed, he finally found her, and the her was actually Esther, who's also Jewish. Her and Mordecai, they're both Jewish. So now she's she's the queen. And you can imagine that her life has completely changed. There's so much that's happening around her, for her, to her, so much that she has to be aware of. It is a lot. Enters Haman. Now here's what's so interesting about Haman, which uh it's fascinating. He was a high government official. You want to say something? Yeah? You want to say hi? No? Okay. So he was a high government official. Okay? And what's what's so important here is for whatever reason, which we don't have time to name today, um, he wanted to have Mordecai killed. And so he devises this plan. This plan to not only have Mordecai killed, because for some reason they're enemies. He wants to have all the Jewish people killed in order to just kill Mordecai. And so he devises this plan and Mordecai gets word of it, and immediately Mordecai goes to Esther and he tells Esther all about it. And Esther hears this and she's thinking, okay, but what am I supposed to do with this information? If I run to the king and tell him, like, hey, here's the plan, here's what's happening, the king will find out that she's also part of the Jewish culture. And then she could be put to death. So here's what was it? Stay. Esther and all the Jewish people could be put to death, and if she doesn't say something, Esther and all the other people could be put to death. So she's talking with Mordecai, and they're having this conversation, and Mordecai gives her this great advice, and here it is in Esther 4:14. It reads, For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place. But you and your father's family will perish. And who knows? But that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this. For such a time as this. This is great advice. Because here's the thing: God doesn't have to use Esther to partner with him to do something extraordinary, to again bring beauty and goodness to that community, to save the Jewish people. He doesn't have to, but she's in the position to be used in this moment. God wants to partner with her. She's in the right position to do something about this extraordinary circumstance. So, after the conversation, her and after the conversation she has with Mordecai, they're very she gets so inspired. So inspired to say something, so inspired to do something. And so, what does she do? Oh, you would you like to get down? Okay, you can get down. Say bye-bye. So, what does she do? Y'all, guess what she does? She decides to go to King, go to her husband and say something, and here's what she said. She goes, Hey, can you not kill Jewish people? Can you not do it? Just don't, please, please don't do it. They have another dinner. She says the same thing. She speaks up for others. She says something that is so important. She basically says to them, hey, don't kill the Jewish people. Save their lives. And in that moment, the king could have been angry, but he's not. He's not angry. He finds out, of course, that she's a Jews and he finds out all these other things, and he decides to create this decree. No Jews will be killed. Because she decided to speak up for others. So, what does that mean for us in our lives? What does that mean for you and I when we're in those uncomfortable conversations or we're sitting around that table with people who are saying some things that we don't necessarily agree with that we know is absolutely wrong, that they probably shouldn't say. What does that mean? Well, it means this that we should speak up and show up for others. Now here's the thing we won't have this incredible opportunity to become kings and queens. That's probably not a part of our story. But in our communities, in our circle of friends, we do have this very, very unique and extraordinary opportunity to speak up and show up for others. Yes, it's going to be risky. Yes, you may lose some friendships. Yes, you may lose some relationships. The risk. The risk is so worth it. So before we go, I we've been taking today to create intentional community. So I'd love for you to consider this question with someone around you or someone you don't know. And it's important, and you may chuckle a little bit. Here's the question: What do you consider too risky? Skydiving, bungee jumping, or eating Brussels sprouts? And I love for y'all to just have a have a conversation about it. It's gotta be Brussels sprouts, y'all know. But hey, thanks so much for being here. Let me pray for us, and then Keely and Jennifer will come back up here to close us out. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, um, there are moments like today where um we get to create intentional community together. Where we don't have to stay here all day to enjoy one another, but I pray that as we leave here today that we would find the time to connect with someone we don't know, um, get to know some of the kiddos who are running around. What a true representation of a multicultural, multi-generational community who is in who has made the decision to love one another in the process of being inspired to follow you or take the next step in following you. We love you so much, and it's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.