It is good to remind ourselves that the will of God comes from the heart of God and that we need not be afraid~ Warren Wiersbe
Do you know the story Esther? If not, please read the book of Esther in the Old Testemant. As a kid she was my favorite bible character. Confession: It was because she was a bride in my Alice in Bible Land book. (I was a bit obsessed with brides as a little girl. You can read about that here ). All the same she was my favorite. Here I am, fifteen plus years later, still learning from her
I'm going to start her story in the middle, but not without giving you a quick rundown (You can find the whole story in the book of Esther). Due to God's hand working in Esther every day, she finds herself living in the palace and married to King Xerxes. Little did the King know that Esther was a Jew.While living in the palace, she learns that the lives of her people, the Jews, are in danger of death. The King was the only one who could revoke the law. At this point in the story Esther has just learned of the plans against her people, and her uncle has asked her to do the unthinkable:
All the king’s officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that he be put to death. The only exception to this is for the king to extend the gold scepter to him and spare his life. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king (Esther 4:11).
There are stories we read in the Bible that are hard to understand because the culture is far removed from our current times. Stories such as Esther going before King Xerxes to save her people, without first being summoned, when that action could be the "death of her". Pause. Do you get that? Y'all she could have been killed for entering the King's presence without permission. She was his wife. Pretty scary, right?
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Do you know the story Esther? If not, please read the book of Esther in the Old Testemant. As a kid she was my favorite bible character. Confession: It was because she was a bride in my Alice in Bible Land book. (I was a bit obsessed with brides as a little girl. You can read about that here ). All the same she was my favorite. Here I am, fifteen plus years later, still learning from her
I'm going to start her story in the middle, but not without giving you a quick rundown (You can find the whole story in the book of Esther). Due to God's hand working in Esther every day, she finds herself living in the palace and married to King Xerxes. Little did the King know that Esther was a Jew.While living in the palace, she learns that the lives of her people, the Jews, are in danger of death. The King was the only one who could revoke the law. At this point in the story Esther has just learned of the plans against her people, and her uncle has asked her to do the unthinkable:
All the king’s officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that he be put to death. The only exception to this is for the king to extend the gold scepter to him and spare his life. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king (Esther 4:11).
There are stories we read in the Bible that are hard to understand because the culture is far removed from our current times. Stories such as Esther going before King Xerxes to save her people, without first being summoned, when that action could be the "death of her". Pause. Do you get that? Y'all she could have been killed for entering the King's presence without permission. She was his wife. Pretty scary, right?
On one side, Esther could have protected herself by keeping her mouth shut, keeping her identity hidden,and turning her back on her people as they faced death for their nationality- the one she shared with them. On the other side, She could face the King in hopes of saving her people, while facing possible death herself.
When Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer: “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 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 royal position for such a time as this(Esther 4:12-14)?”
Can you imagine the fear and stress that overwhelmed Esther in that moment?
Pretend you are Esther.You are standing in the only position that can save your family and friends from death, but being bold could cost you your life. Death on either side of the equation. You have a decision to make. What do you do?
Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish (Esther 4:15-16).”
Fearless? Probably not.
Fear less. Maybe.
I like to believe, and hope, that God in His grace granted Esther peace to couple, what could have been, her crippling fear.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Phil 4:6-7).
I've never faced a decision like Esther did that day, but I have had to face fear. In many of my own cases, I can say that fear did not disappear. I had to walk forward with each step in fear. But one thing I had was peace.
So, what am I getting at?
Let's be fearless, in that we acknowledge fear and walk on anyway.
Praying for you!
In His Name,
Jennifer
2 comments:
God has been talking to me about being bold and fearless. Thank you for your words. I love the book of Esther. I love that our God created us (little ladies) to be bold and fearless.
Oh I do too! It's humbling that He creates for the big things that scare us. I normally want to hide from the scariest things, but some of the best things God ever allowed me to do have been the scary things.
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