The story of Esther is an amazing drama filled with irony, violence, and strong characters so that even Hollywood has decided her story is worth making movies of. Esther was an orphan who rose to become a queen, and in the end, Esther, along with her uncle Mordecai, succeed in saving the entire
Esther is why the Jewish nation celebrate
the Jewish holiday, Purim, which actually means “to cast lots” and refers to
how Haman decided what day he would have the Jewish nation slaughtered (Esther
9:23-26).
God’s name is never mentioned in The Book of Esther, but His sovereignty is evident throughout the book and I hope you’ll take the time this week to study Esther’s story for yourself, but for now, I wanted to mention a few reasons why I feel her story is an important one.
1.) God tends to uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things!
I've mentioned this before because it continues to ring true, yet many of us often feel we aren't qualified when called and even fail to answer the call!
Esther lived in a time when the nation of
But God uses her to fulfill His plans and save the entire nation of Israel. The key here was that she was willing to submit to His will and go when and where He called her and so should we.
Two verses I like to remind myself of often when called to take a step of faith are:
"Faithful is he that calls you, who also will do it." - 1Thes.5:24
"For it is [not your strength, but it is] God who is effectively at work in you, both to will and to work [that is, strengthening, energizing, and creating in you the longing and the ability to fulfill your purpose] for His good pleasure." - Philippians 2:13 AMP
(These two verse are ones I often remind myself and others of.)
2.) With God’s help, we can step out in faith and fight our fears!
Esther was a Jewish woman who became the wife to a powerful king. No one, not even the queen, was to approach the king without being asked. And, remember, that King Xerxes had an evil member of his cabinet, Haman, who had already convinced the king to kill all of the Jews. Can you imagine the fear she would be feeling?
Her first reaction was hesitation. She did not want to approach the king, but she placed her fate in God's hands by requesting the people to fast and pray for three days and then bravely approached the king. We too would be wise to remember the Lord reigns and place all our doubts, fears, anxiety- our lives in His hands.
3.) Loving others is the most beautiful testimony of our love for Jesus.
Jesus reminded us when He paraphrased the
Torah and said that love is the greatest commandment. Loving God and loving
others. (Matthew 22:36-40).
Esther knew this to be true when she said “ I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.” (Esther 4:16).
She willing risked her own life to save the lives of many.
While there may not be many of us who would be faced with this type of situation, I pray that, if a situation arises, that I would call on God and be willing to risk my own life to save others, for “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13)
(And it doesn't necessarily have to be our life, but our time, our desires, our own interests, etc. for others.)
4.) Our lives and actions in God's hands can impact future generations.
When Esther stepped out and spoke to save the
Jewish people, she couldn’t have known that she would be impacting generations
to come. Her courageous and selfless act has been celebrated ever since.
What is God calling you to do right now?
- It could be - raise the children I have given to you.
- Teach a Sunday School class
- Feed the hungry
- Minister to your neighbor
For we will never know how our one small act of loving others can make an impact on many.
Blessings,
Sue