Esther, Day 1
Seizing your Moment
Esther 1 – 2:18
In June of 2002, the show “American Idol” took to the airwaves and grabbed the country’s attention. Aspiring artists came from all over the country to perform on the show and possibly get their big break. Lines formed outside of stadiums and other venues with people chasing their dream. The stories that emerged from each season were captivating and inspiring. Some of the participants in the show have gone on to have successful careers in the music business. They have made the most of their moment.
In the passage for today, we see a young lady make her way to her moment. Esther’s journey to the King’s presence included a 12-month purification process. She made the most of these months and became a favorite among Hegai, the man in charge of the women in the selection process for a new queen in Persia. We are also informed in the text that she also found favor among the other women waiting for their moment.
So, the time came for her to enter into the presence of the king. Before she went, she was asked what she wanted take with her, and took one last piece of advice from Hegai, taking what he recommended. Their moment had finally arrived and she stepped over the threshold into the King’s palace, took a deep breath, and encountered the king. The Scriptures are clear that King Ahasuerus was smitten and knew she was the one.
Immediately, a banquet is thrown and Esther is crowned queen. The king is in such a good mood, we are told that he “granted a remission of taxes to the provinces and gave gifts with royal generosity.” Esther, with God’s blessing, had made the most of her moment, and the whole kingdom was blessed.
Every good story has details that we as readers know bring suspense to the journey of the lead characters. In Esther’s case, it was a big secret that her uncle made her keep and that she effectively hid as she went through the process that eventually led to her being queen. Esther was a Hebrew orphan who had become queen of the Persian Empire. God had a plan for her that gave her influence in the court of the most powerful man in the world. Eventually, her position would give her access to information that would save her people. This book is intriguing because of the time period and the very presence of Esther and Mordecai in Susa. In fact, they were disobeying the call for the people in exile to move back to their homeland and engage in temple worship. In spite of their disobedience, they became a vital part of God’s plan and protection for His people. Walvoord and Zuck point out the promise found in the book despite some eyebrow-raising observations, mainly the absence of prayer in the book:
Prayer is never mentioned in the book, though fasting is. In other post-exilic books, prayer is important to the main characters, but in the book of Esther, nothing is said about Esther or Mordecai praying. Both Esther and Mordecai seem to have lacked spiritual awareness except in their assurance that God would protect His people.1
In Psalm 105, the psalmist recounts God’s covenant love for his people.
O offspring of Abraham, His servant, children of Jacob, His chosen ones! He is the Lord our God; His judgments are in all the earth. He remembers His covenant forever, the word that He commanded, for a thousand generations . . . (Psalm 105:6 – 8).
The story of Esther is a reminder that God is faithful to His covenant and He is committed to His promise to preserve His people. We all have our moment in God’s plan to make an impact for His kingdom. As we step into these moments, we can have confidence that God is going to lead us into His perfect will. As we journey through this epic story, my prayer is that we are reminded of the undeniable presence of God as we step into our moments as sons and daughters of the King.
Pastor Chuck
1 John Walvoord and Roy Zuck, Bible Knowledge Commentary, Victor Books (1987), 699.