There are times when a set of circumstances come together, and some people call it Coincidence, others might call luck it the roll of the dice, and others would say someone is behind the scenes pulling strings; A God incidence or divine providence.
If we only look at Esther’s life from her Lower Story we see a myriad of coincidences; but when we view her story from God’s Upper Story we see the hand of God providentially delivering His people and fulfilling His promises. Often when we look at our Lower Story we see coincidences, but when we view our life from God’s Upper Story we see God- incidents; God sovereignly orchestrating His plan; we see His providence.
Do you see your life as a Coincidence or God-incident?
Proverbs 16:33 tells us- “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.”NIV “We may throw the dice, but the LORD determines how they fall.” NLT
Our first takeaway from Esther is- God is still working even when we cannot see His plan; in the darkest hour, on the brink of ethnic cleansing and facing a potential death sentence for approaching the king, God’s plan of redemption continued. And you and I today can have confidence that through divorce, identity theft, cancer, or whatever, God is still working even if we can’t see His plan.
Oddly enough throughout the book of Esther you will never find the name of God mentioned. Not once. The book of Esther is the only book in the Bible where the name of God is never mentioned; but He is present and He is sovereignly working out His plan. God uses the faith and commitment of Esther and Mordecai to move His Upper Story forward.
Our 2nd takeaway from Esther is- God works with and through His people; seeing your life as part of God’s story; living each day knowing that your story fits in God’s Story.
Mordecai understood this and he and Esther lived it. Remember Mordecai’s immortal words to Esther?
“If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” Esther 4:14
Mordecai sees that Esther is not in the palace due to some random roll of the dice. God has an Upper Story, a plan to keep Israel alive, and he will do this one way or the other. His Upper Story cannot be thwarted. God has positioned Esther in an unlikely place for a Hebrew orphan girl, not because of her beauty, but because God wants to use her to accomplish his purpose for such a time as this.
It’s the time and she’s the one- and Esther gets it; she knows that God works with and through His people; she sees her life as part of God’s story.
God is sovereign, He’s working even when I can’t see it and He works with and through His people; my story fits into His Story, He’s positioned me for His purposes.
Friend; It’s the time and you’re the one- live each day with this thought playing in your heart- “It’s the time and I’m the one”.
You may never be in a position where obeying God is a matter of life and death, like Esther. But for the Christ follower, each day is “for such a time as this”- You’re part of His royal family “for such a time as this”. Each day God wants to move His story forward by using you and your lower story. It’s the time and you’re the one.
Each day as your lower story unfolds realize that God is still working even when we cannot see His plan. Your lower story coincidences may well be Upper Story God- incidents. As His child, any time can be the time, so walk out each day realizing it’s time and you’re the one.
It’s the time and you’re the one; imagine the places you go and the things you do that can reflect Him and His love; the everyday ordinary people who you can reveal His redemptive plan to.
Imagine what can happen in our families, our neighborhoods, our workplace, our schools, our city, our nation, if we live each day realizing that “it’s the time and I’m the one”.
