The Girl That Saved Her Nation From Death

By: Joy Schmidt

“…When it was Esther’s turn to go to the king, she accepted the advice of Hegai, the eunuch in charge of the harem. She asked for nothing except what he suggested, and she was admired by everyone who saw her.” Esther 2:15 (New Living)

Imagine that you are an orphan girl living in ancient Susa, the capital of all Persia. Your parents died so long ago that your older cousin Mordecai feels like the only parent you have ever known.

You trust him completely and want to grow up to be like him. People commonly tell you that you are beautiful, with your black curly hair and big brown eyes.

Playing in the streets of Susa as a little girl, you are like all of the other girls. You play the same games and eat the same food.

The one thing that truly sets you apart from the others is still to come when you, Hadassah, will rise up and save your people, the Jews – the chosen people of Yahweh – from certain death.

You, the little orphan girl, will become Queen Esther who will be remembered by all people during the feast of Purim.

Queen Esther has always been a personal hero of mine because of her many qualities: her courage, her beauty that is apparent from the inside out, her tactfulness, and her determined spirit.

Esther’s Wisdom Gave Her Courage

But lately I have also been thinking about her wisdom about the advice that she received and followed. Esther did not just obey what anyone told her, nor did she take guidance without thinking about it herself.

Esther’s prudent wisdom is something that everyone, especially girls, should seek. In our world there are so many things that try to tell us what to do. Like Esther, we should follow only the advice of trusted people.

Esther 2:10 says, “Esther didn’t say anything about her family and racial background because Mordecai had told her not to” (The Message).

Mordecai, Esther’s trusted caretaker, and Hegai, the chamberlain, were two of the people that she trusted and took their advice.

Never take lightly what people tell you. Always make sure that you pray and think heavily about the advice you are given.

Because Esther courageously followed the wisdom of her godly cousin, Esther saved her nation and her cousin from death.

Dear Lord, Please help me to have wisdom and to take good advice from people. Just like Esther, I want you to use me, so please help me to listen to You and not listen to all that the world tells me. Teach me to distinguish what is Your voice from what is false. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Live It

Write down all the advice you get in the next week. Then go back and see what happened with the advice you followed. Think about the advice your parents told you when you were little. How do you use that advice today?

Share It

Whose advice do you trust? Who do you feel comfortable giving advice? Where do you find advice to solve your problems? Click here to leave your comment.