Read Esther 2

The search for a queen begins! Historians tell us that they brought in 400 women for this! Think about how small the chances were for Esther! The criteria that the king’s servants came up with at the beginning of the story was pretty shallow. They were simply looking for a woman who is beautiful. They even made sure that the women were given cosmetics to make them as pretty as possible. It’s so reassuring that God doesn’t look to the outward appearance of a person but to the heart. Men check out the example in 1 Samuel 16:7. Women check out the example in 1 Peter 3:3-4. It’s true that Esther was beautiful, but that wasn’t what propelled her story forward. In listening to the wisdom of Mordecai and concealing her ethnicity she was able to do what Paul often did in the New Testament. Paul writes, “I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.” The passage in its entirety is 1 Corinthians 9:19-23. For us to be effective at reaching people we have to immerse ourselves in their culture and become like them. Our culture training will be very important for our success in the Dominican republic. Esther was very wise in the way the she acted, winning the favor of everyone. She wasn’t afraid to ask for advice or seek counsel before seeing the king. So often we try to go on God’s mission alone but he has given us the gift of the church so that we can support each other. The chapter ends with Mordecai uncovering a murderous plot and passing it on to Esther. The story seems somewhat insignificant at first but it will prove to be important later on. There may be many things we do this year that seem small and insignificant but hopefully by the end of the year we will see how all of these things worked together for God’s glory.