“… Who knows if you haven’t come to
the Kingdom for such a time as this?”
Esther 4:14 ❤ (Verse on Bible Hub)

Esther: For Such a Time as This

We were all created for a purpose. But before we can accomplish what we were created to do, we must know who we were created to be ….

And then find the courage to BE THAT GIRL.

In the Book of Esther, we find a young woman who bravely removed her mask in the face of death. Because of her courage, God powerfully worked through her unmasked vulnerability to save His people.

Esther’s Jewish name was Hadassah. When I discovered that the name Hadassah meant ‘a shrub or tree possessing fragrant and glossy leaves’, God took that opportunity to remind me of the following Bible verse, found in 2nd Corinthians.

“For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among
those who are being saved and those who are perishing.”
2 Corinthians 2:15 (Verse on Bible Hub)

We are the Children of the Living God.

That’s our true identity. When God looks at us, He not only sees His Son’s living blood that covers us, but we are the sweet and pleasing aroma of Jesus to the Father. That’s so beautiful and honestly, quite alot for me to wrap my mind around.

Esther 2:7 says that “Hadassah was also called Esther.” From my limited understanding and the teachings I’ve read, I always understood the name Esther was derived from the Persian word for ‘star’ and she was given this name after entering the king’s harem. Kind of like how Daniel was assigned the name Belteshazzar by the chief official in Babylon after his capture. 

But God had me discover a few days ago that this ‘Esther’ (אסתר) was derived from the Hebrew word Hester (הסתר), which means ::: “hiddenness, secret, mystery, unknown, hide something, conceal, to be invisible, to block someone’s view, to have one’s view blocked.”

Hadassah willingly took on this name to keep her identity safe.

How many times have we postured ourselves to be someone we are not in an effort to survive something that was out of our control?

We cover our true selves so we don’t stand out. Or we keep the mask on so we can feel accepted and not rejected. We do this to avoid danger but the real tragedy for us comes when we invest so much energy managing this facade and forget who we are (and Whose we are) in the process.

But Esther didn’t forget and her story is known by many.

By the time of Esther’s story, the Babylonian empire was destroyed and the Persians had freed the exiled Jews so they could return to Jerusalem to rebuild their temple.

Many Jews remained behind and this is where we find a young orphan girl named Hadassah.

The Persian king, Ahasuerus (Xerxes), had just deposed of his queen (Vashi) for refusing to come before him when he called for her. So his advisors came up with the idea of bringing many virgins to the fortified palace in Susa until one could be found to be Xerxes’ next queen.

When the king’s edict was proclaimed, Hadassah was brought to the Citadel at Susa and placed in his harem. She and many other ladies were given ‘beauty treatments’ for a year, in preparation to go in and sleep with the king. (This to me is like a form of human trafficking.)

After becoming queen, Esther spent years continuing her facade for the sake of her safety, as her beloved Uncle Mordecai had forbid her to reveal her true identity and she listened. (Esther 2:10) Then Haman comes onto the scene and convinces the king to put out an edict that threatens to annihilate the Jews.

Hadassah’s Uncle sends word to her, instructing her to go into the king’s presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people. (Esther 4:8) Hadassah begins to wrestle with this because she knows any man or woman who approaches the king unsummoned will be put to death. (Esther 4:11)

Mordecai speaks these words we’ve all heard before:

“Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone
of all the Jews will escape. 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 your royal position for such a time as this?”
Esther 4:12-14 NIV (Passage on Bible Gateway)

This is where Hadassah remembers herself and rises up …

“Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me.
Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants
will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even
though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.””
Esther 4:15-16 NIV (Passage on Bible Gateway)

Esther could have chosen to do nothing. Or she could have approached king Xerxes with her mask still on and petitioned him to save the jewish people, all while keeping her heritage a secret.

But Esther laid her life down. She bravely unveiled herself before her king and asked him to save her and her people. It was their relationship and the king’s love for Esther that turned the tide in this story.

I know Xerxes was a pagan king. But this story to me is a shadow of what Christ did for us. When Jesus interceded to save our souls, He didn’t just ask His Father to save us. He laid His life down for us.

People will remind us that nowhere in the Book of Esther do we find the Name of God.

They want to glorify Esther as the brave queen who saved HER people.

BUT the TRUTH is ….

GOD is the One Who orchestrated her story and lined up each sequence of events to save HIS people.

When Hadassah removed her mask and was willing to lay her life down, I believe it was God Who stepped in to give king Xerxes his sleepless night. (Esther Chapter 6)

It was God Who orchestrated for the king to thumb through his little book of remembrances and discover that Hadassah’s Uncle Mordecai had saved his life.

And it was God Who stepped in to orchestrate the king’s desire to reward Mordecai just before the revealing of Haman’s evil plot. (Esther Chapter 7)

Because of her bravery, God used Hadassah to save the Jewish Nation.

The Jews still celebrate Purim, a holiday commemorating the saving of the people from persecution in the ancient persian empire. God was all over the story of Esther, and He is all over your story, too, sweet sister!

I am encouraged by Esther’s Story, aren’t you? We may never find ourselves in a situation where we need to cover our identity to avoid impending death like Esther. And we all, unlike Esther, know we can approach our King’s throne without fear of losing our lives. But we still find ourselves putting on our masks at times in an effort to survive something.

The enemy will fight us the hardest and come at us with great intensity when he is threatened by something of God.

In these moments, and with the Holy Spirit’s help, we must remember Whose we are and bravely remain standing (without our masks) and let God fight our battles.

Merriam Webster’s definition of fearless is: free from fear, not afraid, brave.

I disagree. Being fearless doesn’t mean we are free from fear. It means having courage in the face of fear. Many of us, if we’re honest, battle some hair raising, goose bumpy fear every now and then. But we must remember Whose we are and straighten our crowns as Daughters of the Most High God. We need to get rid of our orphan mentality (our old ways of survival), and keep on our royal robe of righteousness that Jesus has already wrapped us in.

God promises us the following :::

Let us then approach God’s Throne of Grace with
confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find
grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16 (Verse on Bible Hub)

His golden scepter is already extended out towards us. Will you reach out and touch the tip of it?

We live in a fallen world. Not only are people sadly dying while unsaved, but the enemy will also fight tooth and nail to convince YOU, a redeemed daughter of God, to keep a mask on for self survival in this hostile world. Satan’s goal is to see us slide into our graves one day, buried with unused gifts, talents and untapped potential.

But YOU, my sister in Christ, were created with great intentionality and purpose.

You are the pleasing aroma of Christ to the Father, as you walk among the saved and unsaved. God, as your Creator, holds exclusive rights to your identity and destiny. You (insert your name) were specifically created for such a time as this (insert today’s date) and no created being (devil included) can interfere with God’s calling on your life unless you grant them permission to do so.

Another nugget God gave me while writing this post … if you glance back at the Hebrew definition of ‘Esther’, the very last part says ‘to have one’s view blocked.’ This startled me but makes sense. When we work hard to conceal something, we are also stunting our own growth by blocking our own view, not just other’s view of us. And God reminded me of 2 Corinthians 3:18. We grow in Christ as we look to Him with ‘unveiled’ faces.

“And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory,
are being transformed into His image with ever-increasing glory,
which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
2 Corinthians 3:18 (Verse on Bible Hub)

My friend, we need each other to remember Who we belong to. When we unveil ourselves before the Lord, we are becoming more like Christ each time.

Lets be brave and refuse to put a mask back on when its time to face a difficult situation. Exodus 34:29 tells us when Moses came off the mountain with the two tablets in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant from speaking with the Lord. We don’t need anybody giving us 12 months of their prescribed ‘beauty treatments’ to get us to look, talk and smell like the world. We are radiant from being in the presence of God and He says we are the pleasing scent of Christ to Him. His nod in our direction is our security and all we will ever need. Hang on to this thought as you go through your day.

From my heart to yours xo,

So we can say with confidence, “The LORD is my Helper, so
I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?”
Hebrews 13:6 (Verse on Bible Hub)

❤

My guest post on angelpenn.com on May 22, 2018 @

Biblical Beauty: Esther – Impact for Such a Time as This

Esther: For Such a Time as This @ freshgracefortoday.com

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