Below is a testimony I shared with the girls at the Bright Lights Father & Daughter Picnic…
The book of Esther is about the relationship of father and (adopted) daughter which blossomed into something beautiful: a vessel unto honor, useful to the Master, a tool for God’s eternal purpose, a conduit for God’s grace, erupting in the deliverance of the Jewish people. Girls, let’s recognize the significance of our relationship with our fathers and pray that the Lord would use us in the same way He used Mordecai and Esther!
It was a night of deep distress. It was probably against her will that Esther had been taken as queen. And now the Jewish people are threatened with mass murder. On that night, Mordecai gives Esther the vision of God: “And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
Mordecai gives Esther a vision of life beyond the bounds of earth,
a vision of God’s sovereign perspective,
a vision of lasting significance,
a vision of who God is,
showing me who I am.
How did Esther respond to her father‘s vision and love? She grabbed hold of it! By God’s grace, she heard her father’s words, she recognized the truth and power of them, and she ran with it.
Esther is an example to us in three key areas:
1. Humble Listening
Esther was queen of a mighty kingdom. She had jewels and servants and prestige. In light of such riches, did she cast off her lowly father’s advice? Did she think, “Well, I’m old enough now to make my own decisions–I don’t need my father anymore”?
No! As Esther grew in age and riches, she continued to listen humbly to her father. “Esther had not made known her kindred or her people, as Mordecai had commanded her, for Esther obeyed Mordecai just as when she was brought up by him.” (2:20)
It wasn’t Esther’s idea to go to the King and plead for her people. That was Mordecai’s idea. And with a humble, open heart, Esther listened.
2. Wisdom
Listening leads to wisdom. As Esther listened to her father, she began to act in wisdom. She did something with what she heard.
“Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” (4:15- 16)
Esther heard her father and turned to the Lord. She fasted and prayed for three days. She believed in the sovereignty and love of God. She desired more of Him. She depended not on her own strength, or even on her father’s strength, but on the strength of God, her Heavenly Father.
3. Love
Esther heard her father. She turned to God. And she was filled with love–faithful, sacrificial, courageous love.
“Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” (4:16)
Esther loved Mordecai. She loved God. She loved His people. She really loved them. This was not a lukewarm kind of love. It was love like a fire–love that acted radically and generously. Love that gave everything.
“Greater love has no one that this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
Esther was a woman of strength, valor, beauty. A true queen of character and nobility. A girl of wisdom and tenderness.
We all want to be like her. And in wanting to be like Esther, we want to be like Jesus. Jesus listened to his Father. Jesus obeyed his Father. Jesus loved his Father. Jesus gave his life.
Girls, let’s follow in Esther’s footsteps… and the footsteps of Christ! Let’s seek first the eternal and wonderful kingdom of God. Let’s join with our earthly fathers, and in honoring them, magnify our Heavenly Father! When we do, He will show us great and mighty things.
