WEEKLY
DEVOTIONS
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CLICK HERE FOR MORE DEVOTIONALS! "FOR SUCH A
TIME AS THIS" "For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" The
book of Esther is a remarkable book. It contains the
first beauty pageant ever performed, and the longest
verse in the Bible (chapter 8, verse 9). Also there is no
mention of God in the book of Esther, however, you can
see His providential care for His chosen people. In this
story, King Ahasuerus had a great feast for all of his
princes and nobles from the 127 provinces in his kingdom.
Queen Vashti was a ravishingly beautiful woman and the
king summoned her to come before the people and show off
her beauty, but she refused. The king was furious and had
her removed. Then the king held a beauty contest to find
his next queen. Esther, a Jew, entered the contest and
was chosen by the king to be his new queen. Five years later, Haman, the king's right-hand man, gets upset because Mordecai, Esther's uncle and guardian, refuses to bow and reverence him. So Haman then persuades the king to make a law that legalized the destruction of all Jews...not knowing that Queen Esther is a Jew! When the proclamation is made, Mordecai sends word to Queen Esther about the new law and seeks her help in persuading the king to reverse it. It is here that Mordecai makes the famous statement, "...and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?"
God has a plan and a purpose for your life if you'll just be obedient to Him! Verses 15 and 16 tell us, "Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer, Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish." There are times when just praying and reading your Bible isn't enough...you've got to fast and pray, and get down to business with God! Esther wasn't praying about whether or not she should talk to the king, nor for God to spare her life...but she needed to know how God wanted her to do it! More damage has been done to the Body of Christ by people who don't wait and listen to the voice of God than anything else! God told Noah to build an ark...then told him how to do it! The angels told the shepherds to go to Bethlehem to see the Messiah...then told them how to recognize him! Jesus told His disciples to find a room for the Last Supper...and then told them how they would find it! You must wait, listen to God, and when He tells you how to fulfill your calling then do it!! Queen Esther prepared a banquet for the king and Haman. After the banquet, Esther told the king how that Haman had tricked him into signing a law that would destroy her and all the Jews. The king became so furious, that he hanged Haman on the same gallows that Haman had built for Mordecai. He then gave the Jews the right to defend themselves against their enemies...thus, the Jewish Feast of Purim is still celebrated today. God placed Esther in the palace to save the Jews. God placed Joseph next to Pharoah to save the people of Egypt from famine. God placed Paul and Silas in prison to save the prison keeper. And God has placed you in the world for such a time as this!! So stop worrying about things that are going to pass away and get busy doing what God has placed you here to do!! I hope you've enjoyed this study. I encourage you to get your Bible and read the book of Esther or simply use the Bible Study Tools at the bottom of this page!
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