We were pleased to welcome Joy Gascoigne from Grimethorpe this evening. She spoke from the book of Esther, reminding us that this book is rooted in real life in real history. Our lives too are rooted in a real time and place, and we can often feel as insecure and vulnerable as Esther. She was orphaned and perhaps felt that life wasn’t fair or that she could not be expected to make a difference in the affluent world of Persian culture, since she was an exiled Jew. Nonetheless, she is evidence to us that God uses all circumstances to teach us and prepare us. She spent a whole year being prepared to be the king’s wife, undergoing numerous beauty treatments; it would have been easy for her to be frustrated with the time this took or to forget that she was privileged and become used to such luxury. Esther’s relationship with Mordecai shows she was grounded in faith, however, and we learn much from her life, chiefly:
1. Waiting time is not wasted time. Often, God uses preparation time to shape our characters, teaching us patience and perseverance and testing our loyalty. If we are faithful in small things, we can be trusted with bigger things. God is interested in the routine and the mundane as well as in the miraculous.
2. God positions people for His purposes. Mordecai just ‘happened’ to overhear a plot to assassinate King Xerxes; the king just ‘happens’ to have a sleepless night and read in the records how Mordecai intervened on his behalf. Esther’s elevation to the position of Queen shows us how God moves people as He sees fit, ‘for such a time as this.’
3. Victory needs both determination and a plan. Esther demonstrated both. She was determined to do her part (‘if I perish, I perish), but also had a specific plan as to how to approach the king and what to say. Prov 16:3 says ‘Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.’
4. What was meant for evil, God works for good (see the life of Joseph and Romans 8:28)
The book of Esther gives us encouragement and confidence that God’s ways will prevail.
