April 25

“And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” — ESTHER 4:14

Esther was a Jewish captive in Persia. One day, the king of Persia, King Xerxes, arranged a feast that would last seven days. On the seventh day, in high spirits from wine, he requested his wife, Queen Vashti, to come and dance for him and his guests. She refused and the King banished her from his presence forever.

Now he needed a new queen. His noblemen went to every province in the empire, searching for candidates. Esther was brought to the citadel of Susa, and for twelve months received beauty treatments, followed by a contest in which King Xerxes picked Esther to be his queen. He did not know she was Jewish.

Behind the agenda of the King was a divine agenda for Esther. The Jewish people in Persia were threatened with a holocaust that would destroy them, and Esther played a key role in saving God’s people. At risk to her life, she requested an audience with the King. He was pleased with her and eventually she had persuaded him to rescind the orders that were intended to annihilate her people. As her Uncle Mordecai said, God had placed her in the King’s palace for such a time as this.

From a divine perspective, Esther was in the right place at the right time for the right purpose. In the same way, God often brings us into an area where He has bigger reasons than we know. He is continually at work in this world and we have the privilege of playing a particular role, but it is in the context of a much bigger picture.

There are many leading characters in the Bible, ordinary people who have done great exploits because they knew their God. God has plans for our lives, and when our hearts and minds are aligned with His, He’ll use us in extraordinary ways. Sensitivity and obedience to His agenda will ensure the outworking of His personal guidance. We may never know the chain of events God orchestrates that eventually puts us in such a place for such a time on a grander scale than we know. Perhaps a life will be saved, a shelter built, a tragedy averted because God was directing our course.

Though we may not be privy to an end result, or only see it in hind sight, God’s plans for our lives are intricately connected to His plans for the world. We need to look beyond the mundane to the magnificent and see God’s divine purpose.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, I don’t feel worthy to be used by You in any extraordinary way, but I am wholeheartedly willing and available for You to use me in any capacity You choose. Thank You, Lord.

TO REFLECT UPON: Am I looking at my life from a divine perspective, trusting God to use me beyond my expectations?