HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 1ST WEEK OF LENT.
THEME: GOD HAS PLACED YOU ON THE ASSIGNMENT.
BY: Fr. Karabari Paul.
“In those days: Esther the queen, seized with deathly anxiety, fled to the Lord. And she lay on the earth together with all her maid- servants, from morning until evening, and said: “God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, blessed are you; help me, who am alone and have no helper but you, for my danger is in my hand.”
Esther was born into slavery, a Hebrew lady, married into the royal household at a time when it was kind of dangerous to be a Jew, or in fact, a woman in the king’s courts (and she was both). When her uncle Mordecai encouraged her to tell the King about a plot against the Jews, Esther was, quite naturally, afraid. Though she was the queen, if she went to the King without being sent for, she could be executed. But Mordecai told her, ‘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 4:13-14).
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Mordecai’s faith is fascinating. He knew that God would come through, one way or another. But alongside that trust that God had the big picture sorted, Mordecai also knew that Esther’s choice was a real one, with real consequences for her and those around her. C.S. Lewis observed that: ‘God can make good use of all that happens. But the loss is real.’ God has got it. He really has. But He is also put you somewhere He wants you, and whether you step into that or not will play out in real terms for people around you.
And what was Esther’s reaction? ‘I will go to the king [on behalf of my people]…and if I perish, I perish!’ (4:16). And the Reading of today (Esther 14:1.3-4.11.13-14) is the prayer she said to God. She didn’t perish, she succeeded. So what can we learn from Esther? 1) Anyone who comes first before God can stand anywhere before man. 2) When you first start out, God won’t give you all the details. That doesn’t mean He doesn’t have a plan. When you constantly seek Him, you’ll discover His plan and draw on His strength. 3) When you know God has called you it gives you confidence to overcome every obstacle whenever they appear. 4) Knowing God’s in control gives you boldness. When Esther said, ‘If I perish, I perish,’ she was simply putting herself into God’s hands, knowing that even death can be faced with confidence when you trust Him. The people in the Bible who did amazing things weren’t any different from us, but they all trusted God and listened to Him. We can follow them. We can copy how they followed God. GOD IS STILL ON THE THRONE. May God lead and use us through Christ Our Lord Amen. Good morning.
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