purpose in your placement
The Book of Esther is an exciting book. God is not mentioned once in the book, yet if you look closely, His presence is everywhere. God uses Esther and Mordecai and places them in purposeful places that result in them being able to save all of the Jews in Susa.
Disclaimer: I’m going to start with the first 5 chapters of Esther and then will discuss the next five, next week. So bear with me as I take you through the first 5 chapters. The book starts with King Ahasuerus throwing a feast for his officials and servants. This feast lasted 180 days and was meant to show off the riches of his royal glory. After that feast, he threw a smaller feast for all of the people present in Susa. This feast lasted seven days. On the seventh day, King Ahasuerus was drunk and requested that Queen Vashti come before him and the people in an immodest way. He did this to brag to the people of her beauty. However, the queen refused. This sent the king into a raging fury. So out of his anger, the king did away with Queen Vashti. He then held a beauty pageant, of sorts, to find his new queen.
In comes Esther. Esther was being looked after by her cousin Mordecai. He sent Esther to the king’s palace. Mordecai instructed Esther not to reveal that she was Jewish. So Esther went to the king's palace and quickly won over the favor of Hegai. Hegai, who was in charge of the women, gave Esther cosmetics and food. The King chose Esther over all of the other women. Now fast forward a bit, Mordecai overhears a plan to kill the king. Mordecai alerts Esther and she told the King, saving him. (Remember this for later– it’s important)
In comes Haman, he’s the villain of the story. Haman had devised a plan to get rid of all of the Jews in Susa. Haman proposes an empire-wide death sentence for the Jews. This is where the purpose of the placement of both Esther and Mordecai becomes extremely important. After hearing the news, Mordecai became deeply distressed. Esther had not yet heard about the decree, so when Mordecai alerted her Esther immediately knew something had to be done. She instructed Mordecai to fast for three days and nights, and that at the end of their fast, she will go to the king. What astounds me is she says “If I perish, I perish”. She was determined to be obedient to God no matter the cost.
What amazes me about this story is that God is not mentioned once in the book, yet the evidence of his presence is impossible to ignore. From the moment Queen Vashti refused to stand before the King and his officials to the moment he chose Esther. None of it was by accident or coincidence. These moments were handpicked and instructed by the creator of the universe.
Wherever you are right now, you aren’t there by accident. There is a purpose in your placement. God may feel far away or maybe even non-existent, but I can promise you He is right with you. God used Mordecai and Esther to save all of the Jewish people (spoiler alert), yet Esther and Mordecai were not perfect people. The Book of Esther has sex, murder, and violence which Esther and Mordecai were a part of. Yet God was able to use them for a beautiful purpose. He was working behind the senses in every verse in Esther. And He’s doing the same thing in your life right now. Don’t forget– there is a purpose in your placement.
Esther 4:14b “And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
