Daily Devotionals

Devotional: July 19th

For Reading and Meditation:
     Esther 2:7-8

Yesterday we saw how God's purposeful and loving hand had gently guided Mordecai to Susa in Persia in order that he might be the right man in the right place at the right time. Today we meet the woman who is the centerpiece of the story - the lovely Esther. She was, in fact, the adopted daughter of Mordecai. He had taken her into his personal care following the death of her mother and father some years previously. It is surely significant that we are introduced to Esther with these words: "Esther, was lovely in form and features" (v. 7). Why significant? Because these words imply she was a woman fit to be a queen. Mordecai, being aware of the contest to find a suitable queen for King Xerxes, decides to put forward Esther's name as a contender for the title. Such a decision appears on the face of it to be completely opposed to everything Mordecai believed as a Jew. Most Jews in that period of time regarded a mixed marriage as something to be strictly avoided. But that apart, what man in his right mind would want his daughter married to as sensual and capricious a person as Xerxes? No doubt he considered these factors, but something urged him to enter Esther in the contest. This is what we mean when we talk about the sovereignty of God. It makes itself known in many different ways, one being the gentle pressure that the Almighty places on a person's mind, urging him to do or say something that might be against his natural inclinations. And however difficult that is to understand, one discovers that God's leadings always turn out right.

O Father, where would I be today were it not for Your sovereign purposes quietly being worked out in my life? How grateful I am for the gentle pressure of Your Holy Spirit that turns me from one path to another. All honor and glory be to Your wonderful Name. Amen.

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