I just recently finished reading through the book of Esther, and there were a few qualities that I noticed in her and her uncle, Mordecai, that really stuck out to me. In Esther 4:14-16 I see a certain dedicated, determined, jump in with both feet, “We ain’t getting any younger, what’s the worst that could happen,” attitude embodied within these people.
When it was revealed to queen Esther that her people, the Jews, were facing extermination, and that she was the only one with power enough to do anything about it, she spent very little time with excuses. The first thing she said was essentially, “If I go before the king without having been summoned and if he’s not feeling merciful, it’s off with my head!” It was a reasonable concern. But then Mordecai didn’t beat around the bush. He let her know that if she wouldn’t do it, God was more than capable of raising up another deliverer to do it for her, but that she and her house would suffer for her inaction.
“And besides,” I can hear him adding, “Who knows if you’ve been brought to the kingdom for such a time as this? If God has put you in this position of high regard, which I believe He has, and if He’s given you everything you need to be the hero He intended you to be, then no one can touch you. When God is for you, who can be against you?”
And just like that, she threw the excuses aside and sprang into action. She knew that what her uncle had said was true, so she had the faith to act upon it. She told him to gather as many Jews as he could and pray and fast for three days, telling him that she and her maidens would do the same. (A wise decision.) “Then,” she declares, “I’m going to square my shoulders, grit my teeth, and march in there before the king, even though it’s not quite legal.” And then she has the audacity to say, “If I die, I die.”
Wow, what a candid statement! Now, that’s not to say that she wasn’t terrified going in there, but I think that she was able to suppress that fear with the knowledge that this was her burden. She couldn’t pass it off on someone else. She couldn’t wait until it was a little easier to deal with. She couldn’t just pretend she didn’t know her calling, and “sweep it under the carpet.” She knew her responsibility, and followed it through.
And as I’m sure many of you know, she finds favor in the King’s eyes, he allows her to have whatever she asks for, up to half his kingdom. And this is the really cool part. Not only does she manage to get the problem solved to the best of her ability, but she also takes out the cause of the problem, Haman. She wants to be thorough, so it won’t happen again.
There are so many lessons we can glean from this story, and I want you to comment on the one that sticks out most to you. But what I really see is the character: determination, bravery, responsibility, duty, dedication, singlemindedness, faith. All of them stemming from a right relationship with God. If Esther had not kept herself so pure and righteous before the LORD, she probably would not have been chosen to be the new queen. And if she had not ordered a time of prayer and fasting, the victory would not have been complete, if in fact God had decide to give them the victory.
Why am I so big on character? I really don’t know for sure. But some of my greatest heros are groups of people like the Musketeers and Samurai, who fought for honor, for king and country. They lived by a strict oath, they fought to the death. They lived, trained, and often died together. They were the best.
This is what God’s army should be like. We ought to be so dedicated to our anointed leader, our pastor, that we would lay our own reputation and feelings on the line to defend his honor. And if, perchance, he’s been dishonorable, that’s between him, God, and whoever he holds himself accountable to. But that does not relieve us from our responsibility to pray for him, and lift his spirit up in prayer.
We have been given a mission, to reach the whole world with the Gospel, and we ought to be dedicated to that mission even if it means our death, as it has for many down through the years. If we die, we die. But we can take comfort in the fact, that if God has called us for such a time as this, then He won’t let us die until we’ve completed our mission, and beyond. And if we do die, then as long as we’ve been saved and have lived our lives pleasing in His sight, we’ll see Him face to face. I’m not saying that having a Bible study with your neighbor is going to be life threatening, I’m just saying how dedicated and prepared I would like to see the church be. Because when we’re ready to make that kind of sacrifice, then we’ll really be dangerous, and God WILL use us to do great things for His glory.
So I encourage everyone who reads this to dive deeper into what God has in store for you. If you had enough endurance to read all the way through this post, that’s a good sign that you have what it takes to go all the way through what God has for you. :) Don’t let this verse pass in one ear and out the other, but claim it and believe it, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”
God bless
Eric… You always have a way with words. Thanks for pointing out good life lessons from such a great story.
Good use of bold text at the end ;-)
AMEN! Queen Esther has always been one of my role models because of what she did. Its so amazing how good God is to us.
Way to go, Eric. I enjoyed the post very much.
You know how people say, “Chivalry is dead?” Yeah, they say it. I had to look up the meaning of chivalry before I could really add to it. It means, “The qualities idealized by knighthood, such as bravery, courtesy, honor, and gallantry toward women.” And since you’re wondering too, gallantry means, “dashing courage; heroic bravery; noble-minded behavior.” I love the dictionary. :) Yes, it does seem that chivalry is dead. I think the main difference between chivalry and what we see from day to day in America is that chivalry is selfless. It focuses on others; their worth, their right to live and be treated with respect. Most Americans have been taught to be selfish. Advertisements are all aimed toward “indulge yourself, please yourself, make yourself look good, do things the way you want them to be done, you deserve to have the world revolve around you.” We’re pressured and encouraged to do what we want without giving thought to how it affects others around us, or how it’ll affect us negatively down the road. Philippians 2:4 says, “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.” If you start at the beginning of the chapter, it says that if there’s going to be any peace and joy, this is how we ought to live. And we can, through the power of the Holy Ghost. When we claim that power every morning, and walk in the spirit every day, we can tune our minds into what God wants, and align our attitudes to His.