JANUARY 2, 2026
Observation
King Xerxes is looking for a new queen after kicking out Vashti. They basically gathered all beautiful young women from across the kingdom, and Esther is one of them. What really hits me is that Esther wasn’t trying to stand out or make a scene – she was just humble and obedient. When Mordecai, her cousin who raised her, told her not to tell anyone she was Jewish, she kept quiet. When Hegai, the guy in charge of all the women, gave her advice about what to bring to meet the king, she listened to him instead of trying to do her own thing. And it worked. Everyone who met Esther liked her. Hegai gave her the best room and special treatment. When she finally went to the king, he fell in love with her more than anyone else and made her queen. Meanwhile, I’m thinking about Vashti from chapter 1, she got removed because she refused to obey the king. It’s like the complete opposite. Esther’s obedience brought blessing, while Vashti’s refusal brought consequences.
Application
When I’m going through tough times – whether it’s stress at work, problems in relationships, money issues, whatever – I get so focused on what’s going wrong that I completely forget about all the good stuff God has already done for me. Like, I’ll be complaining about one thing while ignoring ten other blessings right in front of me. I need to actually make myself stop and think about it. Maybe I should start keeping a list on my phone of things God has done. When something good happens, write it down. When a prayer gets answered, even in a small way, write it down. When I make it through a hard situation, write it down. Because when the next storm comes (and it will), I’ll have proof that God has been with me before. Just like Esther probably didn’t understand why she was going through all this at the time, I don’t always understand what God is doing in my life right now. But looking back, I can see His favor. I just need to remember it more often.
