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? (Esther 4:14)
MY “ESTHER ERA”
Recently, I realized that I’m in my own “Esther Era”, as I like to call it. I’ve had to do a brave thing. If you don’t know the story of Esther, here is a recap:
THE RECAP
A Jewish teenaged girl, Esther, lives in Susa under the Persian King Ahasuerus. The King commands his wife, Vashti, to be displayed before hundreds of his drunken countrymen at a feast. Queen Vashti refuses the order and loses her crown.
After he sobers up, the King is depressed. His advisors hold a contest to choose a new queen. Out of the beautiful contestants, Ahasuerus favors Esther and she becomes the next Queen. Ahasuerus doesn’t know Esther’s entire identity. On the advice of her uncle, Mordecai, Esther never reveals her she is Jewish, a people conquered and carried off to exile in Persia years earlier.
Further twists in the plot ensue. Uncle Mordecai saves the King’s life. The King gets busy and forgets to reward Mordecai for his act of valor. After all, the King still doesn’t know that Mordecai is Esther’s uncle. The King’s ego-driven chief advisor is Haman. Heroic Mordecai refuses to bow down to Haman. This is a huge insult to Haman’s ego. Haman initiates a plot to murder all Jews in Persia. The King out of ignorance blindly signs an order for genocide. Thus Haman, the right-hand man to the King, seeks a solution to his “Jewish problem”.
THE BRAVE THING
Uncle Mordecai begs Esther to help. She fasts and prays. Courageously she moves forward and hosts a special dinner for the King and Haman. During the feast, she reveals her Jewish identity. The King learns Haman’s plot would also murder the Queen. Due to God’s miracle, Esther and her people are saved. Esther has done the brave thing.
ANOTHER BRAVE THING
Like Esther, I have a heart for righteousness, and when I feel something isn’t right, I act on it when God allows me to. Recently, I made a brave decision. I reached out to someone who could hear my words and know my heart in hopes of change for a group of people. This was after I heard disheartening information regarding concerns from other believers and community members. God kept reminding me to do the brave thing.
A TIME LIKE THIS
And you know what? I got a response. I have a meeting set up in hopes of a change. My prayer is that the meeting will help others, even if it’s at a personal cost to me because for such a time as this. Are you possibly in your own personal Esther Era? God can help you also do the brave thing for such a time as this.
Read about another “Esther”, Corrie Ten Boom