Sometimes, We Just Need a Cheerleader
Esther and Mordecai
Many times when we are faced with a difficult spiritual decision involving risk, we hesitate.
It’s not that we are unwilling to pay the cost or stand for truth, it’s that we are needing validation.
Validation that
Yes, it is a cost that should be paid.
Yes, we are hearing God correctly.
Yes, this keeps us in God’s will.
Yes, we are interpreting scripture correctly.
Validation that
No, we are not unbalanced and fanatical.
No, we are not being foolish.
No, we are not straying away from God’s plan.
When Esther was faced with presenting herself uninvited before the king, she knew it could mean her death. If the king did not use his scepter to excuse her presence, he could order her death.
The death of all the Jews was imminent
in the coming months, but Esther was being faced with the possibility of her immediate death.
I believe Esther was willing to pay this cost for her people.
I believe she just needed validation that Mordecai knew the risk, and still believed it was the path she should take.
She needed the strength and reasoning from Mordecai to confirm that God wanted her to take the risk of going uninvited before the king.
Esther needed a godly cheerleader to help her
confirm what God was already doing in her heart.
Have you ever wanted to do something for God, something that involved risk and consequence,
and you weren’t sure if it was truly God’s plan that you do it?
Perhaps you have had a similar conversation with God like the following.
“Lord, You know if I take this risk for You, I may lose my job?’
“Yes, my child, I know,” the Lord says lovingly.
“OK Lord, as long as you know what is at stake, I surrender.”
It seems like a silly interaction.
Of course God already knew all these things, but in your humanness,
you just wanted to be sure that your situation was understood.
You just needed that extra assurance that God wanted you to take that risk.
We know it is possible to take foolish risks for God.
Risks that lack wisdom and discernment.
Risks that hinder God’s will rather than fulfill it.
This is why evangelists, mission conferences, and special meetings are so important.
This is why friends that “sharpen” us are so important.
This is why daily communion with God is important.
We need continual encouragement that
the risks we take and trials we endure
while serving Christ are worth the cost
and are in God’s will.
Esther had a beautiful heart of surrender.
I believe she was always willing to pay any cost, but just needed confirmation that her sacrifice was in fact, God’s will.
After being sharpened and encouraged by Mordecai, Esther willingly, with peace and resolve, said those famous words, “If I perish, I perish.”
God wants us to take risks and be vulnerable.
If doubt obscures our decision making, we should find someone who can sharpen us and encourage us with God’s principals, to help us decipher if our risk or decision keeps us in God’s will, and then root for us as we press on.
Mordecai’s cheerleading helped Esther to continue her service to her people and her God.
What a blessing if we could be that cheerleader for someone else!
