Daily Devotionals

'Every Day Light' with Selwyn Hughes

Devotional: July 14th

For Reading and Meditation:
     Esther 2:15-20

The twelve-month period for those who were being groomed for selection as queen is now at an end and the day arrives on which the new queen of Persia is to be selected. Esther, along with the other contestants, is given access to all the perfume and finery that she desires. Just imagine that! It's rather like saying: "Whatever you need to look your best - get it. It's all yours!" Esther selects what she desires and then, suitably dressed, is presented to the king. Xerxes takes one look at the beautiful Esther and loses his heart to her right away. There is absolutely no doubt in his mind; this is the woman he wants to be his wife. Esther is to be the new queen of the land, and all this takes place without her Jewish identity being made known. So far so good! Quietly and unhurriedly, God has brought about the first stage in His plans to protect and deliver His people. The selection of Esther as queen is probably one of the most important moments in the calendar of God. To gaze on this scene and not to thrill at the marvelous workings of the divine mind would be strange indeed. We must use it to reinforce the conviction that ought to be in the heart of every Christian, namely the fact that God never vacates His throne. Even though there may be times when God appears to have no interest in the march of the moments, He is working out His purposes nevertheless. Only blind ignorance interprets His silence as weakness. As a poet once put it - history is His story!

O Father, drive this powerful and important truth more deeply into my spirit than it has ever been before. Fashion it into the shape of an anchor that will hold me steady in the most fierce of storms. This I ask in Jesus' precious and peerless Name. Amen.