Esther
๐ช๐๐ฅ๐ ๐จ๐ฃ
โข Tell us about one of your fears. What happens when you face it?
โข Have you ever been asked to speak up for others who are in trouble? What happened?
โข Share about a time you felt dragged into a conflict you did not want to be a part of. How did it go for you?
๐ช๐ข๐ฅ๐
โ๐๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ช๐ง ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฑ ๐ด๐ช๐ญ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ข๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ, ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ช๐ฆ๐ง ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ช๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ๐ข๐ฏ๐ค๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ฆ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฆ๐ธ๐ด ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ข๐ค๐ฆ, ๐ฃ๐ถ๐ต ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ง๐ข๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณโ๐ด ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ฉ. ๐๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ด ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ท๐ฆ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ด๐ถ๐ค๐ฉ ๐ข ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด?โ ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐๐ด๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ญ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฎ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฑ๐ญ๐บ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ค๐ข๐ช, โ๐๐ฐ, ๐จ๐ข๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฆ๐ธ๐ด ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ข, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ญ๐ฅ ๐ข ๐ง๐ข๐ด๐ต ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ข๐ญ๐ง, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐ฐ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฆ๐ข๐ต ๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ฅ๐ณ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฌ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฆ ๐ฅ๐ข๐บ๐ด, ๐ฏ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต ๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ฅ๐ข๐บ. ๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฎ๐บ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ธ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ข๐ญ๐ด๐ฐ ๐ง๐ข๐ด๐ต ๐ข๐ด ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฅ๐ฐ. ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐จ๐ฉ ๐ช๐ต ๐ช๐ด ๐ข๐จ๐ข๐ช๐ฏ๐ด๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ข๐ธ, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ช๐ง ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ฉ, ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ฉ.โย ๐๐ฆ๐ง๐๐๐ฅ ๐ฐ:๐ญ๐ฐโ๐ญ๐ฒ
(Read also ๐๐ฆ๐ง๐๐๐ฅ ๐ฐ.)
Esther was chosen as queen by King Ahasuerus of Persia, who reigned from India to Ethiopia (Esther 1:1). She was also an orphan who had been raised by her older cousin Mordecai. At Mordecaiโs instruction, she hid her identity as a Jew.ย
However, when one of the kingโs trusted advisers tried to have the Jews wiped out, Mordecai asked Esther to go to the king and plead on the Jewsโ behalf. Esther knew that appearing before the king uninvited could lead to her death. Despite this, she accepted Mordecaiโs prompting and decided to speak to the king. What does Estherโs story tell us about how God works in our lives?
๐ญ. ๐๐ผ๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฎ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ธ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ถ๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ฟ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐.
โ๐๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ช๐ง ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฑ ๐ด๐ช๐ญ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ข๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ, ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ช๐ฆ๐ง ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ช๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ๐ข๐ฏ๐ค๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ฆ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฆ๐ธ๐ด ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ข๐ค๐ฆ, ๐ฃ๐ถ๐ต ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ง๐ข๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณโ๐ด ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ฉ. . . .โ ๐๐ฆ๐ง๐๐๐ฅ ๐ฐ:๐ญ๐ฐ
Godโs plan is always in motion for the good of His people. Even if we do not respond, God keeps His promises and fulfills His purposes. Esther was reminded of two things. First, that she could trust Godโs plan for her people. Second, that her obedience could help deliver her nation, her family, and herself. What does it mean for you to trust in God in the midst of your fears?ย
๐ฎ. ๐๐ผ๐ฑ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ผ๐ฝ๐น๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐น๐ถ๐๐ต ๐๐ถ๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ฟ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐.
โ. . . ๐๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ด ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ท๐ฆ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ด๐ถ๐ค๐ฉ ๐ข ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด?โ ๐๐ฆ๐ง๐๐๐ฅ ๐ฐ:๐ญ๐ฐ
God has a plan and purpose for every one of His people. There are no accidental roles or appointments. Esther was selected from hundreds, maybe thousands, of young women to become queen. She found herself in a position of access to the only person who could prevent the destruction of the Jewish nation. How do you respond to God when you feel like the wrong person for your time and place?
๐ฏ. ๐ช๐ฒ ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ธ ๐๐ผ๐ฑโ๐ ๐ด๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐น๐ถ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ถ๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ฟ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐.ย
โ๐๐ฐ, ๐จ๐ข๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฆ๐ธ๐ด ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ข, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ญ๐ฅ ๐ข ๐ง๐ข๐ด๐ต ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ข๐ญ๐ง, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐ฐ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฆ๐ข๐ต ๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ฅ๐ณ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฌ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฆ ๐ฅ๐ข๐บ๐ด, ๐ฏ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต ๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ฅ๐ข๐บ. ๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฎ๐บ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ธ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ข๐ญ๐ด๐ฐ ๐ง๐ข๐ด๐ต ๐ข๐ด ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฅ๐ฐ. ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐จ๐ฉ ๐ช๐ต ๐ช๐ด ๐ข๐จ๐ข๐ช๐ฏ๐ด๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ข๐ธ, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ช๐ง ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ฉ, ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ฉ.โย ๐๐ฆ๐ง๐๐๐ฅ ๐ฐ:๐ญ๐ฒ
Esther accepted that Godโs purpose was greater than herself, even than her own life. Even after she accepted Godโs calling in her life, Esther did not attempt to take on such a great mission alone. She called upon all of the Jews in the city capital to fast with her for three days. She and her own attendants also fasted, seeking the Lord, for those three days. As you walk in Godโs calling with your life, who have you asked to walk with you in this mission?ย
๐๐ฃ๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ก
โข Look at your current situation and circumstances. How do you think God will use you to fulfill His purpose where you are? What steps can you take this week to actively pursue Godโs purpose?
โข As you pursue Godโs purpose in your life, in what areas do you need His guidance and power? How can you rely on Him more and more, instead of on your own strength and wisdom?
โข Are you helping others, especially the next generation, live a godly life and pursue Godโs purpose? How can you encourage and partner with them to do so? How can you also continue to seek guidance and mentoring from others?
๐ฃ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐๐ฅ
โข Thank God for the privilege to build upon the legacy of the godly generations before yours. Ask God for a heart to leave behind a godly legacy for future generations as well.ย
โข Pray that God would strengthen your relationships in your church community as you help each other, especially different generations, pursue God and His calling together. Pray for opportunities to be equipped and to equip others as well.
โข Ask God to help you walk with and encourage the next generation to pursue Him and His purpose for their lives. Ask Him to help you see them as He doesโfuture leaders and coworkers in His kingdom.