Do you ever read something that you know you've read/heard a million times, and it seems like it's happening for the first time? That's never really happened to me with the Bible, since I've grown up in church and went to Bible college and all that stuff. But yesterday was different.
I was supposed to teach from Esther 4 in kid's church yesterday, so I spent a lot of time yesterday afternoon [being a procrastinator and] prepping for my lesson. I read through chapters 1-3 to get a better feel for it, since I have heard it so much, and I wanted to make sure I got all the details right.
I swear, it was like the first time reading it.
The pretty standard things that people will preach out of Esther is 1)Esther was a queen who managed to save all the Jews, and 2) it took courage for this woman to go to her husband the King and reveal that not only did she want the lives of all the Jews, but hers as well since she was a Jew.
My biggest revelation?
God works out the craziest things to save lives. Ester 4:14 (NIrV) says "...perhaps you became a queen for such a time as this." I swear I just sat there stunned for a few minutes. Now, as I told the kids, Esther wasn't really anyone pre-Queen. She was a beautiful girl who'd lost both parents and had been raised by her cousin Mordecai. She had a pleasant demeanor and gentle spirit, and because of these things plus her beauty, the King found favor in her.
She was created beautiful so a King would fall in love with her so she could one day save a nation.
That just struck me in such a huge, thunderous kind of way. I told the kids last night that they were all created to be who they are "for such a time as this." There are things they can do that I'll never be able to do. There are things I can do that they'll never be able to do. I told them that I firmly believe with everything in me that they can change the world if they just have the courage. Yes, we don't have a monarchy so it's very likely that none of them will ever be in that kind of situation, but... We serve a crazy awesome God. We serve an extremely creative God who works out the strangest circumstances for His glory.
Esther had so much courage... When she went to see her husband, she knew there was a chance she could be killed unless he waved the royal scepter at her. Back in the day it was actually illegal to just go see the king without being summoned, so she had a lot at stake. And because of her beauty and her demeanor, the King not only waved the scepter at her but also offered her up to 1/2 of his kingdom if it's what she wanted.
I was created "for such a time as this." Now, I don't know when exactly that sentiment will be true, but it IS going to be true. I've got a special purpose in my life, as do you, whether you accept it or not.
Cheers,
A Redhead
Abba help me to have courage like Esther. Help me to realize that what I see as mediocre can be used for your glory.
Esther 4:14 (NIRV)
"Who knows? It's possible that you became queen for a time just like this."
Esther 4:14 (NIRV)
"Who knows? It's possible that you became queen for a time just like this."
The thing that fascinates me the most about Esther is that she conformed to the norms of the secular culture before being chosen as queen. She spent a considerable amount of time in the palace training to fit into the secular culture in order to catch the king's attention. A lot of times in Christian circles we talk about "being set apart." However, Esther fulfilled God's will be doing just the opposite.
ReplyDeleteI love Esther just for the sheer fact that it was extraordinarily out of place for a Jew in that culture. How perfect did it reflect that God uses any situation and not just cultivated and relevant to the nation of Israel. As Coffeytime already pointed out, all too often Christians claim to set themselves apart and ignore that Esther and Paul walked among the world, being involved with the world as they did. I'm guilty of doing that, of not allowing myself to be open for anything but rather setting myself off to the side to be "set apart". Over the last few years I've learned to relax my ideals and not be so stuffy about my self imposed rules.
ReplyDeleteIt is still a beautiful story and I love it!