Amongst the many laws of the kingdom there was one which stated that nobody, including the queen, could appear before the king unless he commanded it.  Any person who did appear before the king was risking the death penalty.  

Esther knew the king loved her.  But he always followed the law.  She also knew that only the king could deal with Haman's wicked plans.  She had to talk to the king.  But he hadn't commanded her to come.  Should she risk her life by going anyway?  

Esther knew very well that King Ahasuerus trusted Haman and his advice.  If she walked into the king's presence, she had no way of knowing whether he would accept her - or have her put to death for breaking the law.  But if she didn't talk to the king, all the Jews in the kingdom would be killed.  

Esther had a big decision to make.

Prayer:  Lord, give me courage to do what is right.  Amen.

Aunt Charlotte, a missionary in an African country, was home for a break.  Helen was happy.  She liked Aunt Charlotte and especially liked the stories she told.  But Aunt Charlotte was only staying with them for a couple of days.

'I hate having to go to school when Aunt Charlotte's here,' Helen told her Mom.  Aunt Charlotte heard her and shook her head.

'Please don't say that Helen dear,' Aunt Charlotte's eyes filled with tears.  'In Africa, there are nine million children who can't go to school because their mother has died of AIDS.  Most of them have to look after their families or work just to have something to eat.  They love to go to school and if they could go, they wouldn't miss school for anything.'  Aunt Charlotte dabbed her eyes.  'You can thank God for school - and pray for these dear African children.'

After that, Helen didn't mind going to school at all.

Prayer:  Dear Lord, You bless me so much with health and a good place to live.  Please bless every African child.  And thank You that I can go to school.  Amen.

Jerry and his Dad were camping in the wilderness.  It was Fall and this would be the last trip together before the school year started again.  Lying in his tent, gazing at the black star-studded sky through the tent door flap, Jerry wished the trip would last forever.  Smiling at that thought, he fell asleep.

'Wake up, Jerry.'  Dad was pushing him roughly.  'Get out.  Get to the stream.  Forest fire.'  Dad didn't even give Jerry time to get dressed.  He hauled him to his feet and pushed him outside.  'Quick, to the stream.  Run downstream.  Don't stop.'

Jerry started to run, then stopped.  Where was Dad?  'Move it, Jerry,' Dad yelled.  'I'm going back for the cell phone.'

Jerry splashed through the water, sometimes tripping, sometimes plunging into deep holes.  On he went.  Finally, he could slow down.  Looking back, he saw an inferno of flame.  But no Dad.

'Oh, God, don't let Dad get hurt.  Don't let him...'  Jerry couldn't finish the prayer.

All day, Jerry waited.  He was lost.  Hungry.  And he knew that without Dad, he would never find his way out of the wilderness.  It was almost dark again when he heard a sound and saw a dark shadow rushing towards him.  Jerry was too tired, and too scared to run.

'Jerry!'  It was Dad.  He was covered in ash and limping.  'A burning tree fell on me, but here I am.'

'Thank You, Lord,' Jerry whispered.  He buried his face in his Dad's shoulder and hugged him tight.  'I'm glad you're okay, Dad.  You'll be able to get us home.'

And Dad did!

Prayer:  Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You keep us safe and lead us home.  Amen.

Billy was having trouble with his computer. The mouse pointer jumped around in hops and jerks. He couldn't move it smoothly.

'I know what's wrong.' Jessica, Billy's sister picked up the mouse. 'This mouse is dirty.'

Billy grabbed the mouse and polished it with a cloth until it gleamed. He tried again. The mouse still didn't work right.

'Let me have it.' Jessica took the mouse, twisted the bottom panel open and let the ball fall out. 'See the dirt inside?' she asked.

Billy nodded. He could see the three rollers inside were full of dust.

Carefully, Jessica scraped off the dust and replaced the ball and panel. 'Try it now,' she said.

Billy tried it. The mouse worked perfectly.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You that You clean my life from the inside, and make me fit to serve You. Amen.

It happened at the 2008 Olympic Games. Sara Renner, a member of Canada's Cross Country skiing team was leading her part of the race when her ski pole broke. An onlooker quickly handed Sara another pole and she was able to continue and make up ground. Canada won a Silver medal, coming in second in that event.

The wonderful part of this story is that the onlooker was one of the opposing team's coaches, Norwegian Bjornar Haakensmoen. By his action, the Norwegian coach showed the true Olympic spirit of pure sporting competition. Norway didn't win. But everybody, Canadians, Norwegians, and all other countries in the race honor what Bjornar Haakensmoen did when he made it possible for an opposing athlete to compete in a fair manner.

Prayer: Dear Lord, help me to do the right thing to help others in need. Amen.