“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 4:16

God brought Esther from obscurity to become the queen while she was a Jewish orphan living in exile in Persia. People must have been scratching their heads.“How did a nobody like her marry the king? Do you know what neighborhood she was raised in? I don’t get it.” But God loves to take the underestimated and do something awesome. In Esther’s case, His purpose was to use her position to save the Jewish people from destruction. In the face of the loss of her own life, Esther discovered the greatness that God put inside her and was catapulted into her destiny.

Although Esther was Queen, her people were in danger of going extinct as there was a plot to wipe out all Jews from the Persian land. At the time, she was only allowed to see the King only when he had summoned her, and he summons her once every thirty days. However, following Mordecai’s insistent prodding, she resolves to do what she can to save her people, ending with the ringing declaration “After that I will go to the king, though it is against the law; and if I perish, I perish.” This selfless act of faith is what leads to the salvation of the entire Jewish nation.

Her stance was not only an example of faith, but a testament of selflessness, signifying a need for us all to exploit our positions and blessings in a way that would be beneficial to others.

I pray that, like Esther, we will all discover the essence of our call, a blessing or an opened door. May we understand that God usually positions us in better situations because He wants us to help others, our families and our nation at large. With this outlook, we will all be able to test the perfect will of God. Amen.