‘This Is Your Moment’

​Daily Devotional – Tuesday, May 11, 2021

“Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14b, NLT)

Esther was a reluctant queen faced with an impossible choice. The king had allowed himself to be flattered into writing an irrevocable decree that would eliminate one whole people group from his domain; being a bit of a drunk and given to spontaneous and even irrational decisions, he did not realize that this would include his new queen, Esther. Esther is now faced with the choice of either staying silent and watching the members of her immediate and extended family, the Jews, slaughtered or speak up and risk the king’s displeasure and the loss of her own life. Those of us familiar with Esther’s story know that she bravely resigns herself with the words, “If I perish, I perish.”

Very few of us will ever find ourselves rubbing shoulders with royalty on a regular basis, but we may very well find ourselves in difficult positions with our backs against the wall. Some of the challenges we face in our lives are self-inflicted consequences of sin, but not all. Like Esther, God may lead us to a particular place at a specific time to accomplish an explicit goal. It’s at those times that we need courage beyond our own; we need to trust God—if he has in fact brought us to this moment, he will work out his purposes.
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We would do well to follow Esther’s example. After committing herself, she sets aside time to pray and fast. God has promised to help us accomplish the tasks he sets before us, so it is best that we rely on his help and not attempt to overcome any difficulty in our own strength. Esther was able to save her people because God granted her courage and favour with the king. God had indeed made Esther queen through a rather strange set of circumstances for the purpose of saving her people. What might God be wanting to accomplish through the difficult situations he allows into our lives, as we respond in obedience and reliance on him?
~ Pastor Jane