Tucked in the middle of the Old Testament is the story of a heroic woman who moved decisively and sacrificially in a moment of crisis. Esther went down a road traveled by very few as she risked her life to protect her people, the Jews. Her willingness to risk and act resulted in her own personal survival in a very tenuous situation and ensured that her people, from whom the Messiah would eventually come, survived as a nation.

Esther, a Jewish orphan, was raised by her cousin Mordecai who was also her lifelong mentor. Being a woman in the Persian Empire was not easy or pleasant. As is still true in many countries today, women were considered second-class citizens and were at the mercy of the men in authority over them. Queen Vashti was removed as queen for embarrassing King Xerxes, and Esther was chosen as her replacement. The king's second-in-command, Haman, developed a hatred for the Jews and used his influence with Xerxes to attempt to annihilate them. Essentially a powerless sex partner to a king who strongly preferred women who never interfered with his wishes, Esther was understandably fearful of the consequence of revealing her identity as a Jewess.

After three days of fasting and prayer by the entire Jewish community, Esther realized everything that had happened in her life had prepared her for that moment in history, and she enacted a plan to uncover Haman's plot and save her people. God uses humble, teachable and obedient people to accomplish God's long-term plans. What appear to be coincidences are often part of God's involvement and timing. We can be an effective part of God's plan as we accept unfair persecution and follow Esther's example of maintaining a can-do attitude, humility and determination to lean on God. Who knows but that God has put each of us, like Esther, in our current position for "just such a time as this"!

In this lesson you will:

1. Relive the story of Esther
2. Identify the survivor in you
3. Recall the power of your story