Faithful Heroines: Trusting God's Purpose and Timing
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"Esther was a Jewish orphan and she was raised by her cousin Mordecai. And when Queen Vashti fell out of favor with the king, he instructed his officers to gather beautiful young virgin women from across his kingdom to become part of his harem. And this is how Esther finds herself at the king's palace. So can you imagine that as a as an ordinary Hebrew girl suddenly finding yourself rounded up taken out of your home and finding yourself in the harem of the king following Mordecai's advice Esther does not reveal that she is Jewish." [00:00:52] (41 seconds)
"Esther was afraid no one could see him without being invited so she fasted and prayed for three days to build up her courage to see the king Esther asked the Jewish people to fast and to pray with her too it was very dangerous for Esther to approach the king without his permission but Mordecai told her she had been put close to the king by God especially to save the Jewish people Esther came up with a plan and invited the king and Haman to a banquet the next day." [00:06:40] (43 seconds)
"Esther's life was probably not what she dreamt of. She found herself in a strange place and in a dangerous situation. If she spoke to the king without being asked, she was in danger of losing her life. Yet, she was willing to be faithful to God and follow his leading. God had put Esther in exactly the right place at exactly the right time. And Mordecai tells Esther in chapter 4, verse 14, That's the most well-known verse in Esther, for a time such as this." [00:10:34] (59 seconds)
"Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch Christian woman who during World War II helped Jewish people escape Nazi persecution. She was born in 1892 and she grew up in a devout Christian family. In 1940, as the Nazis invaded the Netherlands, the Ten Boom family hid Jewish refugees in their home. Eventually, they were betrayed. And in 1944, Corrie and her family were arrested. Most of her family died. But Corrie and her sister were sent to the Ravenbrook concentration camp." [00:12:30] (41 seconds)
"But I'm sure they were absolutely terrified. But they were still willing to be faithful to God's calling, whatever the cost, despite the cost. And they truly believed that his love was so great that it could sustain them through all things. As Corrie's sister said, there is no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper still. And you can imagine the atrocities of the Ravensbrook concentration camp and how deep that pit was there." [00:17:52] (31 seconds)
"Sometimes it's hard to think of biblical characters and big, famous historical figures as being ordinary people. But they were, at their time, they were ordinary people who were able to do extraordinary things through God. They were willing to step up to the challenge when it presented itself. Or rather, when God presented the challenge to them. They were willing to step out in faith." [00:20:11] (31 seconds)
"And as Christians, we sort of believe this too, don't we? That there's no such things as a coincidence. Things don't just happen by random chance. They're not coincidences. They are God incidences. When we were in lockdown, I had this beautiful picture of an orchestra. And it was in MGM Technicolor and surround sound. It was absolutely amazing. And I had this picture of God as an orchestra. And every instrument that you could ever imagine was there was in the orchestra." [00:21:28] (33 seconds)
"He has it all in control. And we've sung today, even when we can't see it, he's working. Even when we can't feel it, he's working. And sometimes in the midst of our situation, it's difficult to see it and it's difficult to hear it. But trust him, he's working. He's working. Our life, our situation is not just a random act of chance. The God who created the universe and everything in it put you here for a reason." [00:22:43] (31 seconds)
"God has placed us where we are just as he placed Esther and Corrie. He has things for us to do. And he has placed us in just the right situation at just the right time to do them. Like Esther and Corrie, our lives may not be what we dreamed of. My life is certainly not how I would have planned it. And along with many, many good times have been disappointments and sacrifices and heartache along the way." [00:23:58] (33 seconds)
"We may not know the impact we have on other people as we move through our life following God's lead in. Julie Jones shared with us a few weeks ago about a young man that she'd shared the gospel with. And she was privileged to know a short while later that that young lad had accepted the gospel and come to faith. And that's not a privilege we may have. We may not know the ripples that our life have on other people until we get to heaven." [00:24:38] (30 seconds)
"Get a glimpse of how God has orchestrated history through the Old Testament. You may think that the stories of the Old Testament are not relevant to us now. It's all about tradition and it's all about law and what you have to do and what you can't do. But they are so relevant to us because they give us a glimpse of how God organized and orchestrated history to bring things about." [00:26:08] (22 seconds)
"Get to know how much Jesus loves you by reading the stories of the New Testament. This will build wisdom. It builds wisdom. And knowing how much he loves you will cause your love for him to grow too. We love because he first loved us. This will help you hear the leading of the Holy Spirit more easily. And it will help build the strength of faith that you will need if you are required to step out in faith. Know your Bible." [00:27:47] (34 seconds)
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"Esther was afraid no one could see him without being invited so she fasted and prayed for three days to build up her courage to see the king Esther asked the Jewish people to fast and to pray with her too it was very dangerous for Esther to approach the king without his permission but Mordecai told her she had been put close to the king by God especially to save the Jewish people Esther came up with a plan and invited the king and Haman to a banquet the next day." [00:06:40] (43 seconds)
"Esther's life was probably not what she dreamt of. She found herself in a strange place and in a dangerous situation. If she spoke to the king without being asked, she was in danger of losing her life. Yet, she was willing to be faithful to God and follow his leading. God had put Esther in exactly the right place at exactly the right time. And Mordecai tells Esther in chapter 4, verse 14, That's the most well-known verse in Esther, for a time such as this." [00:10:34] (59 seconds)
"Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch Christian woman who during World War II helped Jewish people escape Nazi persecution. She was born in 1892 and she grew up in a devout Christian family. In 1940, as the Nazis invaded the Netherlands, the Ten Boom family hid Jewish refugees in their home. Eventually, they were betrayed. And in 1944, Corrie and her family were arrested. Most of her family died. But Corrie and her sister were sent to the Ravenbrook concentration camp." [00:12:30] (41 seconds)
"But I'm sure they were absolutely terrified. But they were still willing to be faithful to God's calling, whatever the cost, despite the cost. And they truly believed that his love was so great that it could sustain them through all things. As Corrie's sister said, there is no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper still. And you can imagine the atrocities of the Ravensbrook concentration camp and how deep that pit was there." [00:17:52] (31 seconds)
"Sometimes it's hard to think of biblical characters and big, famous historical figures as being ordinary people. But they were, at their time, they were ordinary people who were able to do extraordinary things through God. They were willing to step up to the challenge when it presented itself. Or rather, when God presented the challenge to them. They were willing to step out in faith." [00:20:11] (31 seconds)
"And as Christians, we sort of believe this too, don't we? That there's no such things as a coincidence. Things don't just happen by random chance. They're not coincidences. They are God incidences. When we were in lockdown, I had this beautiful picture of an orchestra. And it was in MGM Technicolor and surround sound. It was absolutely amazing. And I had this picture of God as an orchestra. And every instrument that you could ever imagine was there was in the orchestra." [00:21:28] (33 seconds)
"He has it all in control. And we've sung today, even when we can't see it, he's working. Even when we can't feel it, he's working. And sometimes in the midst of our situation, it's difficult to see it and it's difficult to hear it. But trust him, he's working. He's working. Our life, our situation is not just a random act of chance. The God who created the universe and everything in it put you here for a reason." [00:22:43] (31 seconds)
"God has placed us where we are just as he placed Esther and Corrie. He has things for us to do. And he has placed us in just the right situation at just the right time to do them. Like Esther and Corrie, our lives may not be what we dreamed of. My life is certainly not how I would have planned it. And along with many, many good times have been disappointments and sacrifices and heartache along the way." [00:23:58] (33 seconds)
"We may not know the impact we have on other people as we move through our life following God's lead in. Julie Jones shared with us a few weeks ago about a young man that she'd shared the gospel with. And she was privileged to know a short while later that that young lad had accepted the gospel and come to faith. And that's not a privilege we may have. We may not know the ripples that our life have on other people until we get to heaven." [00:24:38] (30 seconds)
"Get a glimpse of how God has orchestrated history through the Old Testament. You may think that the stories of the Old Testament are not relevant to us now. It's all about tradition and it's all about law and what you have to do and what you can't do. But they are so relevant to us because they give us a glimpse of how God organized and orchestrated history to bring things about." [00:26:08] (22 seconds)
"Get to know how much Jesus loves you by reading the stories of the New Testament. This will build wisdom. It builds wisdom. And knowing how much he loves you will cause your love for him to grow too. We love because he first loved us. This will help you hear the leading of the Holy Spirit more easily. And it will help build the strength of faith that you will need if you are required to step out in faith. Know your Bible." [00:27:47] (34 seconds)
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