Morning Moments

Esther - a courageous woman God placed in a key position, who with the help of her uncle Mordecai, were used of God to save the nation of Israel.

8:3 - The Request - "And Esther sapke yet again before the king, and fell down at his feet, and besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite, and his device that he had devised against the Jews."

This was no casual petition. She knew the damage that Haman the Henchman had done with his deception and diabolical scheme. She further knew that the damage could not be undone without the approval of the king.

8:4 - The Response - "Then the king held out the golden sceptre toward Esther. So Esther arose, and stood before the king."

I love this verse. It is what I call "rising to the occasion. Because of the humility with which Esther, the Queen approached the king, and because she had won his attention and affection, he was pleased to honor her petition. The king extended the sceptre toward her. It indicated more than pe ission...it indicated pleasure. She had prevailed and in her prevailing she had saved her people from extermination. God had it planned all along, but He needed someone who could rise to the occasion

8:5 - The Results - To get this kind of results there had to be The Appeal, The Agony, and The Approval.

"And said, If it please the king, and if I have found favour in his sight, and the thing seem right before the kind, and I be pleasing in his eyes, let it be written to reverse the letters devised by Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews which are in all the king's provinces."

The Appeal - esther was safe in the palace, but the people were unsafe in the provinces. Like Moses, she was willing to suffer with the people of God than enjoy the pleasure of the palace if need be. she did not merely concern herself with her own safety and security, but she extended her heart and expressed her hope that all of her people would be spared. The flesh concerns itself with its own safety and satisfaction. The spirit concerns itself with the safety of the brethren.

We shall continue tomorrow God willing. Have a blessed day.