Esther, Part 1

adapted from She, volume 4 of Delighting in the examples of the Women of the Bible/pp17-18

Today’s Scripture: Esther 1-2 and Psalm 37:23

The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Psalm 37:23

Friends, can you remember a time in your life when it was clear to you that the Lord ordered your steps? For me, it was the timing of my children. Actually, when I look at the broader picture, it was the timing of my grandfather’s death (April 19, 1987). At the time, I thought the only thing special about the timing was that my mom and dad made it home from vacation shortly before Papa took his last breath. I had been sitting there by his bedside with my grandmother throughout the day; he had had little to no moments of ‘alertness’, that is, until my dad returned home and walked into the room and stood by his bed. As memory recalls, he reached down, touched his hand, and simply spoke the word “dad”-and in that moment, Papa’s eyes fluttered open for a brief moment, a smile tinged his lips, and within the hour, he was in the presence of his God.

I remember being amazed at God’s timing. I remember thinking how sweet it was that God had loved and cared enough about my dad to give him that last hour with his dad, instead of coming home to find him dead. I remember the comfort that it brought my grandmother. I also remember meeting Don Post (my mom and dad’s pastor) and other members of their church that night, and in the coming days surrounding the service and celebration of his life. Little did I know those days were the beginning of not only beautifully timed friendships but the awakening of a faith suppressed by sin and a spirit of pretense. – Ouch, that truth hits hard and is honestly difficult to share, but it is perhaps the truest beauty of God ordering my steps in those days, though I couldn’t see it at the time.

God had a purpose

You see, I had been married nearly seven years by then. I had longed for children through all of those years. My relationship with God (and my husband) had ebbed and flowed accordingly, but I became very good at the ‘cover-up’ (you know, church stuff on Sunday and Wednesday and special event days and living as I pleased the rest of the time). Over the next two years, I became pregnant, my husband changed jobs, we decided to build a house, and we moved in with my parents while we were building. All the while, I was oblivious to the true beauty of God’s timing. Beauty that included being under my parents’ roof, where Christianity wasn’t just a religion but a relationship with God. Conversations about Scripture (God’s sovereignty, grace, redemption, and love…) were not uncommon; friends from their church frequently popped by, and while I don’t know that I realized it at the time, all of it was like fresh water on the dry roots of my faith. Bible reading and prayer began to become a daily part of my life again – not just part of a checklist but a desire of my heart. So many good changes and blessings – yet with my growing faith came the realization that not all of my relationships were healthy ones, including the one with my husband, who wasn’t thrilled by my rekindled faith. The very thing that he once said he loved about me had now become a point of contention and regret, and finally fueled an argument that forced me to choose between standing firm in my faith and appeasing him. God gave me the courage to stand firm, and He honored the choice for many years to come. As for the other unhealthy relationships, God either weeded them out or transformed them, all the while cultivating new relationships that strengthened my faith and prepared me for things only God could have known were coming.

Almost two years from the date of my grandfather’s death (April 19, 1897), Annie, my first daughter, was born (April 17, 1989). Almost two years after meeting the people from my parents’ church, and the friendships that ensued, they were in the hospital when she was delivered. They welcomed us home, and they became an integral part of our lives. Why? Because God ordered my steps – and led me to the place and the people He knew I (and my family) needed. I had been in church all of my life, Sunday mornings, Sunday nights, Wednesday nights, and any special events. I was saved at the age of five or six, and grew up to teach and serve in the church of my childhood. I didn’t understand when my parents chose to leave the church for another church just a few short years before my grandfather’s death, but God did. He understood it all, saw it all, and was ordering their path too, and purposefully used it to rescue me from the wilderness I was in, lead me to a new body of believers, where I would learn about the depth of God’s mercy and grace in a way I had never understood. In doing so, He prepared a better path for my children than what they would have known if the path had not been changed. Oh, how I love and praise Him for being a God who orders the steps of His people according to His perfect will.

Friends, God ordered Esther’s footsteps as well. He placed her exactly where she was for a specific reason, exactly when she needed to be there. We will explore this further in the days to come, but for now, please do not miss the seemingly small things we see in Esther chapters 1 and 2, particularly verse 9 or chapter 2.

5 Now there was a Jew in Susa the citadel whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjaminite, 6 who had been carried away from Jerusalem among the captives carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away. 7 He was bringing up Hadassah, that is, Esther, the daughter of his uncle, for she had neither father nor mother. The young woman had a beautiful figure and was lovely to look at, and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter. 8 So when the king’s order and his edict were proclaimed, and when many young women were gathered in Susa the citadel in custody of Hegai, Esther also was taken into the king’s palace and put in custody of Hegai, who had charge of the women. ⁹ And Esther pleased him and won his favor. And he quickly provided her with her cosmetics and her portion of food, and with seven chosen young women from the king’s palace, and advanced her and her young women to the best place in the harem.

Reflection and Application

List out the ways you see God ordering the steps of Esther in 2:9?

Write down a time you remember when God clearly ordered your steps.

The More We Know

¹⁰Esther had not made known her people or kindred, for Mordecai had commanded her not to make it known. ¹¹And every day, Mordecai walked in front of the court of the harem to learn how Esther was and what was happening to her.