Encouragement, God's Plan, God's Promises, Grace, Love, Obedience, Our Identity, Peace, Protection, Relationship to Christ, Submission

Esther’s Destiny

Did you know God has a plan for each one of His children?  We may think that things happen just by happenstance, but we have a God who has a plan, and He works it out for our good.  (Jeremiah 29:11)  This month we will be looking at one of the most amazing stories in the Bible, at least I think so.  This story is about how God took a young Jewish woman, made her a queen, and saved her people from harm.  Our Scripture today says, “the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.” (Esther 2:17 ESV)

As a little background, King Ahasuerus had a great party for all his officials and servants, one that lasted 180 days.  There was a great deal of drinking of wine, and the king showed off his great wealth.  He then held a feast that lasted seven days for all the people in his kingdom and there was again, lots of wine.  His queen, Vashti, also had a feast for the women.  The king commanded Vashti to come to his feast so that he could show off her beauty before those in attendance, but she refused his order.  This made him extremely angry. If the queen disobeyed the king, the other women might think they could disregard their husband’s wishes. So, King Ahasuerus had Vashti set aside and took away her right to be queen. The king then called for young women to be brought to the castle to be part of his harem, and he would choose a queen from them.  Esther was one of those women.  Her parents had died, and she lived with her cousin, Mordecai, as they had both been taken from Jerusalem in the Babylonian captivity. Before she went to the king, Mordecai instructed Esther not to reveal that she was a Jew.  After a year of preparation, the eunuch over the harem brought her before the king. The Bible tells us that the king fell in love with her and chose her over all the other girls in the harem and made her his queen.

Now, I think many of us would look at this situation and wonder how this could have been God’s plan.  The thing that stands out to me is I can see a comparison between the king’s love for Esther and God’s love for us.  God took a whole book to describe how much He loves those who trust in Him. Song of Solomon is a book that deals with the love between husband and wife and shows a comparison of God’s love for Believers, whom He calls His bride.   The other thing that I see is how Esther becoming queen was part of God’s plan, not only for Esther but as we will see, for the Jewish people.  She was destined to be an integral part of saving her people from those who were seeking to destroy them.

I’m sure she must have wondered why God allowed her to be in the king’s castle.  But God had a plan for Esther and the nation of Israel.   I wonder if she ever thought that He had forgotten her?  We are reminded that even when things don’t make sense, in God’s economy, He has a plan.  “You are not forgotten, for you have been chosen and destined by Father God. The Holy Spirit has set you apart to be God’s holy ones, obedient followers of Jesus Christ who have been gloriously sprinkled with his blood. May God’s delightful grace and peace cascade over you many times over!” (1 Peter 1:2 Passion Translation)  God knew exactly where Esther was, and He knew what He planned to do through her!  If you are wondering what God is doing in your life, or if He has forgotten you, let me tell you that He hasn’t.  He knows where you are, and He knows what He has planned for you.  It could be that He has destined you for something greater than you can ever imagine.

Unknown's avatar

Published by

Donna Knuth Rice

I am trying a blog for the first time in my life, and frankly, I feel like I don't have a clue as to what I'm doing! But, here goes. I work at a Christian Television network in the Correspondence Department, where I write letters and emails to our viewers, pray with them for their needs, and send materials they request. I am a Christian. I was saved at the age of 11 during a youth meeting at my church. My pastor led me to the Lord, and to say the least, my life has been an adventure. I am a widow. My late husband, Allen, passed away after 34 1/2 years of marriage. He had been sick the last seven years of his life, and it was a struggle, for him and for me. We met as part of a singing group that was affiliated with a Christian Radio station, and we sang together all through our lives together. We both worked in television and radio all through our married life, mostly for Christian stations. Besides singing I also play flute. I had the luxury of having parents who started out as music teachers...so music was in our house constantly. Some people describe me as being a loud-mouthed lime type...can't disagree with that. I have a tendency to put my foot in my mouth more times than I can count! I also have a tendency to say exactly what's on my mind...which is why I get myself in so much trouble! LOL! Trust me, that's something me and God have been working on for a very long time. I have no children here on earth, although I have a baby in heaven. My baby here is my dog Jack. He's a black lab/ chow mix. He's a big boy....thinks he's a lap dog! Can't think of much else to say. The reason I started this blog is because a few months ago in church, a guest pastor came and delivered a message, and when he asked for those of us who wanted prayer to come forward, I did. When he came to me he asked me if I did any journaling. I told him no 'cause I wasn't very good at it. He told me to start, and prophesied over me that my journal thoughts would impact other people. I wasn't sure just how I was to go about doing this. In fact, I was a little hesitant at first. I started journaling at home, and our assistant pastor's wife asked me to submit something for our Senior newsletter. I didn't the first edition, but something I had heard on Christian radio a long time ago and has stuck with me all these years, came to mind so I submitted an article. That article will be my first post. I don't claim to have all the answers, and my thoughts may seem a little "out there", but I feel God has been prodding me to do this, and so here I am. I hope what I post will bring encouragement, and "Something to Think About".

Leave a comment