Courage for Life for Women - Flipbook - Page 13
C O U R AG E O U S W O M E N O F FA I T H
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Esther
T R U S T G O D A N D L I V E C O U R A G E O U S LY
Esther enters the biblical narrative about one hundred years after the
Jewish people were exiled to Babylon as a punishment for their continual
rejection of God. But before Esther was born, the Persian Empire had
conquered the Babylonian Empire, and God had raised up a Persian
king who gave the Jews freedom to return to their homeland. However,
many Jewish families chose to remain in Persia. Esther’s family was
one of them.
Esther, an orphan, was raised by her cousin Mordecai in the Persian
city of Susa during the rule of King Xerxes. After Queen Vashti was
deposed, King Xerxes issued a decree forcing many beautiful virgin girls
to become part of his harem. Esther was one of those girls, but Mordecai
asked her not to reveal her Jewish ancestry. God’s favor was on Esther,
and she was later chosen by King Xerxes to become his next queen.
Esther was a wise and courageous queen. After her coronation, she
won Xerxes’s confidence by informing him of an assassination plot and
gave the credit to Mordecai. But shortly thereafter, one of the king’s
chief advisers, Haman, let his personal hatred of Mordecai inspire a
murderous plot to destroy all the Jews.
When Mordecai and the Jewish community learned of their impending
destruction, they mourned. At Mordecai’s insistence, Esther agreed to
approach the king, reveal her Jewish identity, and beg for their lives. The
Jews in Susa fasted and prayed for Esther, knowing that approaching
the king uninvited could result in her death. In response to Esther’s
courage, God turned Haman’s evil plans back onto him. In an ironic
twist, Haman was executed instead of Mordecai, and the day the Jews
were supposed to be annihilated became a day of celebration for them.
Courage is not the absence of fear or difficulty; in fact, it is quite the
opposite. Courage is being willing to pursue God-given opportunities
despite your fears or the difficulty of your circumstances. Esther had
a choice: trust God and have the courage to reveal her Jewish identity
to the king, or allow her fears to dictate her actions. She chose wisely.
Will you stop making fear-based decisions and live courageously
by trusting God? What opportunities has God placed before you that
require you to trust him to work on your behalf?
Esther’s courageous story can be found in the book of Esther.
