Sisters in Faith
Answering the Call
God took an unknown, powerless orphan and raised her to a level of influence, second only to the king of Persia. Esther’s influence was not just a result of God’s desire to bless her. There was greater purpose for God setting her in that place at that time. God chose Esther and gave her the mission to save her people, but the mission put her life in danger. In that moment, Esther did not call out to God to alter her destiny or plead with Him to change what she must do; He was clearly present in the moment when she uttered the eternally significant words, “If I perish, I perish.” It was then that she surrendered everything to God and answered her calling. In doing so, she preserved God’s plan that Jesus would arise out of the Jewish people. If she had not answered, God’s plan would have been carried out without her, but she would have truly missed her purposed place of honor. It is not up to us to set our own course in life. We must be ready to answer God’s call and become the powerful women of God He created us to be. (1, p.145, 146)
Excerpt from She Speaks: Wisdom from the Women of the Bible to the Modern Black Woman
© 2013 by Michele Clark Jenkins