Beyond Resilience

No doubt, #2020 has been an exceptionally challenging year. I can't help but reflect on the significantly important role the word 'resilience' has played in my outlook towards everything that has happened and not happened this year. 

The story of Esther comes to mind. Queen Esther epitomises 'resilience' in every sense of the word. Nevertheless, Esther's life is proof that resilience is the outcome of much more deeply ingrained values and resolution. 

Earlier this week, I posed the following questions on the group chat of some young ladies I mentor, whom I call: 'daughters of the King of kings':

A blessed morning to you daughters of the King of kings👑👑👑 I am reminded of the story of Esther this morning and would encourage you to meditate on her life, how she carried herself in king Xerxes palace. I know the story of Queen Esther is usually linked to courage and boldness but take some time out to ponder on the following questions regarding another side of her: 

1. What can you learn from the condition of her heart, regardless of her external beauty?  

2. Although she had found the king's favour through her external beauty, what was her approach to her beauty, especially when she needed to appear unannounced before the king, regarding her people: 'the Jews'? 

3. What was Esther's focus🤔?  

I look forward to your comments ladies 🤗😍😀✨🌻

...and here is what we all had to say:

Gift Nnadi

 

She was a woman of Virtue, Humility, Patience and most of all, a woman of Obedience. She followed instructions which in turn favoured her. No, her beauty wasn't the reason she rescued her people. Moreover, she was a woman of Prayer and an intercessor. She didn't quit or back down to any storm. She was a woman of Courage.

Noella Kabeya

She did not depend on her external beauty to appeal for her. She relied on faith and courage. She was 'beauty with brains'. Coming to think of it, she was queen from the very first day, she was ordained to rule. So we should remember that beauty should not make us boastful instead it should make us humble.

Lois Ajayi

Here's my reflection on the book of Esther:

1. The condition of Esther's heart is humility. Though some may not see the story of Esther as a story of humility, it is to some extent. You see, while Esther got to be queen because of her external beauty, I believe she also had spiritual beauty which could only be found when you spend time in the Lord, and as her been a Jew, she must have been "groomed" spiritually, by spending time with God, worshipping Him, reading the stories of how God took care of His children etc. therefore, with all this grooming taking place, she must have thought, when she was queen, that this couldn't have been only her external beauty that got her to be queen but also her spiritual beauty, knowing that she couldn't have been both external and spiritually beautiful, must have been humbling for her. Therefore, leading her to fulfil her purpose in the palace with God's hand and favour. Because, God won't put favour on an arrogant and prideful person, no matter how beautiful you are, externally. He even said it in His word in James 4:6-7 "God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble." So I believe that she must have had a humbling heart condition.

2. We must remember that it must've taken more than external beauty to be used by God. I have some really externally beautiful friends, but they aren't necessarily spiritually beautiful. Spiritual beauty will make God want to use you among all other people, with His favour, glory, beauty and light. You see, God wouldn't have used someone who just thinks of how they look, dress or even smell to save His nation, but He looked for someone who spent time in His presence, who loved Him and people, and who was humble enough to be put beside a king and not have gotten all boastful as the queen.

3. I believe Esther focused on the reason she was queen. For instance, while it must have been nice to eat all the food in the palace, she told the Jews to fast and pray with her so she may fulfil God's plan for upholding her there. We all know that fasting is a spiritual activity. You see, when  God uses you, you will be so busy being used and so busy being blessed to be a blessing, favoured for a particular time and purpose, and in spiritual warfare eg; praying or worshipping, that it will consume you and all your focus. We should all get to the level where our external beauty is just a cover-up for our spiritual beauty. Our spiritual beauty should shine brighter than our external beauty. Not to say, we shouldn't look the part or care about how we look but we shouldn't let it consume us.

Keren Kabeya

Esther was more than just courage. Her faith was firm and she was not afraid to be called different because of her belief. Her heart was set right with purpose. 

The Bible says from the heart flows all the issues of life.

Abosede Ijabadeniyi

Esther’s heart condition

1.  Deep in the heart of Esther was a selfless disposition of service. The heart condition of service makes one vulnerable enough to God so much so that one looks beyond physical capabilities and strengths in total surrender to God and His will. 

It was the same heart condition David had when he surrendered himself to be vulnerable enough to what God can only do through him in overcoming Goliath. There is, therefore, a link between service and surrender. A person who has a heart condition of service free-falls and gives up earthly recognition or accolades.

 

The only thing Esther gave room for in her heart was service to God. She made God occupy the entirety of her heart until her relationship with God reached a point where God saw her fit to save her nation, the Jews. Her total surrender and reverence to God led her to the point where nothing else mattered. Mary, the mother of Jesus also had a heart condition of service. A young virgin, who must have had so many hopes and fantasies of marriage, had to relinquish her dreams so that she could be used by God to fulfil His will. Her total surrender to God made her tell the servants at the wedding in Cana (See John 2:5): ‘Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.’ It should be emphasised that this statement was made after her son, Jesus told her: ‘Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come (John 2:4).’ I am reminded of the account in John 3: 30 – 31: ‘He must increase, but I must decrease. 31 He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all.’ 

The above Scripture confirms that being a vessel unto honour through ‘service’ comes as a revelation from God, and can only be borne out of the Spirit and not of the flesh. ‘Let us not be desirous of vain glory…’ Galatians 5:26a. Any act of service done out of flesh, for the sake of recognition and accolades cannot be acceptable to God. In other words, such act of service is too superficial to be used of God to accomplish His plan, just the way His will for the Jews was fulfilled through Esther.

2.  Esther's external beauty versus inner beauty

Beautiful Esther, an orphan in a foreign land (Persia) who was living in exile, found favour in the sight of the king amongst the many fair virgins that were gathered unto Shushan the palace, according to the king’s command. Being raised by her uncle Mordecai in line with Jewish values, Esther found herself in a crisis when she was chosen by the king to be queen. Esther was thereafter crowned queen, to replace queen Vashti, who was consumed by her beauty and refused to obey the king’s order to show herself before the king. Esther later found herself in a position where she was the only one who could save her people from Haman’s plot. Her heart condition of service, not her external beauty, however, made her make compromises for her people. 

Being a queen who knew the importance the king attached to her ‘beauty’, calling for a fast wasn’t going to be an option if her external beauty was her focus. In other words, she wouldn’t have called for a three-day fast if she depended on her external beauty to appease the king, on behalf of her people as the fast must have made her look pale and less beautiful when she appeared unannounced before the king. 

This gesture shows that she surrendered her external beauty in the service of God’s plan.

Esther's focus

3.  Queen Esther focused on the unfading inner beauty which only comes from God. Such beauty is not affected by age, lineage, genes or social standing. It doesn’t need makeovers and enhancements to flourish. ‘It is the hidden man of the heart, which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit which is in the sight of God of great price’ (1Pet 3:4).

Esther relied on God to make the king look past her faded beauty (which must have been affected by the fast) to see an ‘unfading beauty’ which is not based on ‘outward adorning of plaiting the hair and of wearing gold or putting on of apparel’ (1Pet 3:3). 

Esther’s heart condition of service and sacrifice reveal that outward beauty is short-lived and shouldn’t be traded for the glory and prize of the high calling in God. 

While it is important to look after one’s self, it is much more important to invest in quality quiet time of fellowship with God where one hears expressly from Him and continuously learn at His feet, just like Mary, Martha’s sister.

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We would love to read your reflection in the comment section. 

We wish you a safer and much more productive #2021, filled with inspiration, pleasant memories and above all, the presence of God!