Written by Chuck Swindoll, these encouraging devotional thoughts are published seven days per week.
Now, before you frown and entertain thoughts of self-righteousness, thinking that you would never have responded like that, remember, you're surrounded by friends in a safe and unthreatened environment where there are no armed soldiers outside and governmental protocol to obey.
Be careful what you say. Be careful how you say it. Be careful that you send the right message, that you send it to the right person, and that you do so with the right motive.
Only one missionary invests his whole life in a remote area, and an entire tribe is ultimately evangelized. Only one statesman stands for right, and a country is saved. Only one strong-willed and determined citizen says, "I stand against this evil," and a community ramps up morally and changes its direction.
God does not mock us with the things He includes in His Word. He isn't in the business of making His people squirm under some unrealistic expectation that they can never attain—something that is totally unique to one person but remains for everyone else a frustrating and unreachable challenge.
Clearly, Esther had something about her that caused everyone to "favour" her, from the king to the women in the harem who were competing against her for his attention and affections. I think she must have had a winsomeness about her.
As ironic as that may sound, I think that most Christian women do not use cosmetics to appear false or become other than who they are. The women we admire use cosmetics to subtly enhance the natural beauty that is already there. I'm sure that was true of Esther.
Someone has said, "Education is going from an unconscious to conscious awareness of one's ignorance." I agree. No one has a corner on wisdom. All the name-dropping in the world doesn't heighten the significance of your character. If anything, it reduces it. Our acute need is to cultivate a willingness to learn and to remain teachable.
Esther exhibited a grace-filled charm and elegance. In this verse, the literal translation of the original language says, "She lifted up grace before his face." Isn't that a beautiful expression? Though she was brought to the harem and participated in these things reluctantly, Esther did not display a sour attitude. I'm convinced she sensed God's hand in her situation.
God's hand is not so short that it cannot save, nor is His ear so heavy that He cannot hear. Whether you see Him or not, He is at work in your life this very moment. God specializes in turning the mundane into the meaningful. God not only moves in unusual ways, He also moves on uneventful days. He is just as involved in the mundane as He is in the miraculous.
God's presence is not as intriguing as His absence. His voice is not as eloquent as His silence. Who of us has not longed for a word from God, searched for a glimpse of His power, or yearned for the reassurance of His presence, only to feel that He seems absent for the moment? Distant. Preoccupied. Maybe even unconcerned. Yet later, we realize how very present He was all along.
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