Royal Position

"For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?" Esther 3: 14

Have you ever sat and read the entire book of Esther from start to finish? It is like reading a movie in your head. I love to play out the bible stories in my head as if they are characters with plot lines and even music to set the scene. It is a powerful story of bravery, courage and fearlessness! The best part is the bad guy gets it in the end. I love that part! We can learn so much from Esther's story. 

It starts with Esther being crowned the new queen to King Xerxes in Persia. She received that role in place of the prior queen who was banished due to her insubordination when King Xerxes asked her to parade around in front of him and his friends. Frankly, I don't blame her. I probably would have said no to that request also. 

So fast forward a while and one of King Xerxes villainous friends, Haman, gets upset with Mordecai because of his insubordination to bow down to him like some kind of God. Mordecai reserved that kind of worship for the one true king. Unfortunately,  since Haman was the center of his own universe, he was able to convince the king that Mordecai along with all the other Jews, should be slain. (Little did he know, Queen Esther was a Jew.) It was ordered and put into law. A law that could not be revoked. 

Mordecai went to the king's gate to send word to Esther to see if she could approach the king and plea for mercy for the Jews. She was at first frightened. She knew that if she was to approach the king without being first invited, she would be put to death. Then Mordecai responds with  the verse from above: "For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?" Esther 3: 14

What  blessing she would have missed out on if she had decided to retreat and allow fear to make the choice for her!? I love how Mordecai says that if you don't do it, someone else will. I know for certain that I don't want to miss out on anything that God tells me to do. If I allow myself to become paralyzed with fear or bombarded with discouragement, I might miss out on something great! I don't want to sit back and watch someone else do what God told me to do and miss the blessing and favor that comes with that obedience! When we learn to step out in faith rather than fear we become the bold, courageous, victorious and brave Esthers' of our families, relationships, workplaces and churches. 

Mordecai then goes on to say, "who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?" What is your royal position today? Did you know you even have one? You do! Perhaps you are the teacher of that 2nd grade classroom or maybe you lead a Sunday School class on Sunday mornings. Maybe you are the girl scout leader for your daughters troop or run your own business. I know for me raising two boys in today's world puts me in a royal position most would think isn't: Mom. You might be asking why would you call it a royal position? Because my friends, we are all sons and daughters of the King of Kings. I don't think it can get much more royal than that! What we do to advance God's kingdoms in and outside of our homes is the royal position given to us by the one true king! The marriages, children, jobs and resources we all have are ours only for a little while to be good stewards of and point others to Jesus. 

Sometimes He asks us to step out of our comfort zone and grow us and stretch us in areas that we otherwise would never venture into. It's ok to feel afraid, and even to question whether your qualified. I love that saying, "God doesn't call the equipped, he equips the called". If God is speaking to you to do something that you feel shows yourself to be too vulnerable and showcases your inadequacies, allow God's strength to shine through. You do what you can, and He will do what you can't. When you see that happen, you know that God met you, right there, in the middle of your weakness and replaced that fear with faith. I am a walking testimony of that. 

When Esther won favor with the king and asked for mercy for herself and her people, remember Haman's edict could not be revoked. So together with Mordecai they wrote a new law. On the day the Jews were to be slain, they would have a right to assemble together, bear arms and protect themselves. In these days we live in, it takes a lot of bravery to live out a life of faith. Our homes, churches, schools and families are attacked. So let's stand up and be like Esther! Let's take back what the devil tries so hard to steal. He is furious because he knows his time is short. Let us also take a stand to do what it takes to protect ourselves and those we love from his attacks. 

Enjoy this blog's song, "Brave", by Moriah Peters. This is one you can turn up in the car or at home and declare as your anthem!