Date: October 15, 2024
Time: 10:00 am
Song: You Know My Name By Tasha Cobbs Leonard
Hi Friends!
One of my favorite love stories in the Bible is the story of Queen Esther and King Xerxes, which is found in the Book of Esther. I encourage you to read the book in its entirety when you have time.
Esther’s birth name was Hadassah. She was an orphan, raised by her cousin Mordecai. She was of the Israel tribe of Benjamin and lived when Israel was exiled. She lived in the city of Susa under the rule of King Xerxes.
One day, King Xerxes held a banquet and invited many people. While there, he summoned his Queen Vashti to show off her beauty to his guests, but she refused to come to him.
This infuriated the king, so he consulted with his officials, who decided that Queen Vashti should be replaced. They didn’t want her disrespectful behavior toward the king to influence the other women in the city to be disrespectful to their husbands. So, they sent out an edict for all the young, beautiful virgins to enter a beauty contest to become the next Queen.
Esther was beautiful and graceful, so she entered this beauty contest to become the next Queen. When she entered the contest, Mordecai told her to keep her Jewish identity a secret, and she did. Esther was beautiful on the outside and had a great character. She was humble. She had to undergo a year of beauty treatments before she could be presented to the king, and she gained favor with all the people she encountered during this time. Esther’s character paved the way for her to be Queen.
God gave Esther favor. Esther won the beauty contest. When the king met her, he loved Esther more than any of the other women and made her his wife.
King Xerxes set a royal crown on Esther’s head and made her Queen. Esther was a Jewish queen to King Xerxes, a Persian king. For their wedding, King Xerxes gave a great banquet in Esther’s honor.
As time passes, Esther lives in the palace, enjoying her life. Then, Mordecai hears that two of the king’s officials are plotting to assassinate him. When he hears this, he tells Esther, and she reports it to the king and gives credit to Mordecai for saving the king’s life.
Then, Haman enters the story. Haman is one of the king’s officials and doesn’t like Mordecai. So Haman comes up with a plan to destroy not only Mordecai but all of the Jewish people. Haman speaks to the king, and unknowingly, the king signs a decree to kill the Jewish people.
When the Jewish people heard about this, they began to mourn. Mordecai goes to Esther and asks her to help save their people. This puts Esther in a tough spot. She’s the Queen, but it is against the law for her to approach the king without being summoned. The penalty for breaking this law is death if the king does not accept her.
When she tells Mordecai this, he tells her the infamous words, “Don’t think because you’re in the palace, you will escape. If you remain silent, deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place. And who knows that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?
Esther responds in faith. She puts her trust in God. She asks Mordecai to have the Jewish people pray and fast with her for three days, then approaches the king.
After three days, Esther went to the king, who accepted her. She then revealed her Jewish identity to him.
The king asks her for her request, and she asks for Haman to be executed and the Jewish people to be saved. The king honors her requests, and the Jewish people are filled with happiness and joy. They have a large celebration because
God delivered them from death through Queen Esther. Their yearly celebration is called Purim.
From Esther’s story, I learned that your background doesn’t determine your future. Esther started as an orphan, and God exalted her to Queen.
The assignment God has for you requires preparation and a process. Esther went through a year of preparation before meeting the king.
You are where you are for a reason. God has a purpose behind everything he does in our lives. God chose Esther as Queen for a reason. She saved her entire nation of people from destruction.
We want God’s favor in our lives. Although many beautiful women were in the contest, God’s favor made Esther the chosen one.
God places people in our lives for a reason. We all have destiny helpers, who are people God gives us to help us reach our destiny. Mordecai was Esther’s destiny helper. He guided her and gave her wise advice on how to be successful as a Queen.
When faced with a crisis, we must be brave and seek God like Esther did by fasting and praying. We also want to be people of wisdom. Esther was a woman of wisdom. She waited until the right time to speak to the king about Haman and the Jewish people. Remember that God has a special plan for your life, just as he did with Esther. We must stay humble. Pride and hatred destroyed Haman, but humility brought honor to Esther and Mordecai. We must live with courage and compassion like Esther and look out for the well-being of others, not just ourselves.
XO,
Dr. Rich 💋
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