“And who knows but that you
have come to royal position for such a time as this?” - Esther 4:14
I love this phrase in Esther
where Mordecai tells Esther to view her life as being part of God's wonderful
plan for her and His people. “You have come to this royal position for such a
time as this.” Do you realize that God created your life with a built-in
purpose as well?
In Ephesians 2:10, Paul
says, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works,
which God prepared in advance for us to do.” That is so exciting to me. As the
Master Potter, God uniquely designed us and placed each of us in the world at this
exact time in order to carry out His will (Jeremiah 18:1-6; Isaiah 45:9, 64:8; Psalm 100:3; Romans
9:20). What happens if we live according
to our own will and neglect the works God created us to perform?
Queen Vashti gives us a
perfect example. She is the Queen of Persia, a woman with immense influence.
She shapes her world by her words and example and everyone in the kingdom,
including her husband, knows it (Esther 1:17-18). I
think she must have been the first recorded Women’s Liberation Movement leader!
In the Biblical account of her life, Vashti is in the middle of a party, which
she threw for all the women of the palace.
Her husband, King Xerxes,
commanded seven of the chamberlains who waited on him to bring Queen Vashti to
display her beauty to the people and nobles. He knew better than to ask her
himself, or to send even one or two of his chamberlains. So he sent seven
emissaries to do his bidding! The Queen could not be bothered, however, and
refused the King’s wishes. Of course, this act of rebellion and disrespect came
at a high price to her. She lost her throne in the palace, her position in the
court and her authority in the kingdom.
There are three different
types of people in the world. Some, like Queen Vashti, live for themselves,
caring little about anyone else. They focus their entire being on climbing the
corporate ladder of success or amassing exorbitant financial gains or serving
their own family. They build their own kingdom rather than furthering the Kingdom of God
Other people exhibit a bit
more spiritual desire and they give God a fraction of their time and money. Some
of them worship with other Believers one or two hours a week on Sunday morning.
They may even pray when they are in need, but they rarely spend time praising God
or reading their Bible. I saw a church sign during our travels that relates to
this group of people, “God does not want just weekend visits with you; He wants
full custody of your life.”
Lastly, we have people like
Esther, who risk their whole life for God and His people. Prior to the King
choosing her to take Vashti’s place, Esther cherished her own dreams for her
life. However, she gave up her individual aspirations and stepped out with
faith and courage for the Lord’s purpose. God used her to save His chosen
people, the Jews. God created Esther for only one defining moment in her entire
life; but, in return, God granted that Esther live the rest of her days in
luxury as the Queen. Faithful people like Esther seek God’s purpose. They live their
life fulfilling His will for them and reaping His benefits (Psalm 103:2, 116:12).
God’s purposes shall come to
pass and His plans will unfold throughout the ages, just as He decreed them
before time ever existed (2
Timothy 1:9). However, He only uses
willing vessels to fulfill His intentions in the earth. You and I may never
have a noteworthy role in history like Queen Esther did, but God needs us to
serve Him in the place where He created us to live. Our little microcosm in the
world is our mission field. This is where God anoints us to serve Him with our whole
body, soul and spirit. We may have a lifelong calling, or just one important
moment in time like Esther; but if we respond to His direction, He will bless
us abundantly in every way.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, as we listen to
the direction of Your Spirit moment by moment throughout the day, You put us in
the right place at the right time to fulfill Your purposes and to further Your Kingdom
in the earth. If we fail to pay attention, and focus instead on our own dreams
and pursuits, we may miss Your calling. Then You will choose someone else to
bless in our place. Help us to follow Your Spirit and to hear Your direction
for each of moment of time.
Thought for the Day:
God birthed each of us in
our current life station “for such a time as this”. 