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Theme: Doing What’s Right- God Calls His People
- Joshua 1:9 says that we should be strong and courageous and not be afraid. Can you think of a time you had to be strong and courageous?
- Esther was an ordinary person, until God placed her in the palace as a queen. God would use Esther’s royal position in an amazing way: to save his people! She just had to obey him. As you listen to this episode, think about where God has placed you and what he might be calling you to do.
After you listen
Memory Verse
For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”
Quiz
Reflect
God had a special plan for Esther. In Esther 4 , Esther had to make a difficult choice. Her cousin Mordecai asked her to go to the king to plea for the lives of the Jewish people. There was just one problem; no one could appear before the king unsummoned, not even the queen, his wife. Anyone who did risked execution. Esther could choose to stay safe in her role as queen or risk her life by going to the king unannounced. Esther made her decision, and asked Mordecai and the Jewish people to pray and fast for her. She needed to be strong and courageous to do the right thing, even if it meant her own death.
Esther 4:14 ends with “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Throughout your life, there will be moments when you have to make big decisions that will affect your life and the lives of others. Some decisions will be very clear to you and easy to make. Other decisions will pit what you want to do against what you know is the right thing to do. Like Esther, you might be afraid of where some of your decisions could lead. In Deuteronomy 31:6, God promises that he goes with you and will never leave you. When we choose to go where God leads, we can have the courage to do the right thing, “for such a time as this.”
To hear the whole story, read the entire Book of Esther (It’s eight chapters long, but it’s an amazing story). Want to dig deeper and learn more about being courageous? Check out John 14:27 and Isaiah 41:10.
Challenge
How do you define “courage”? Listen to the song What Would Jesus Do? Then read the scenarios below and think about what your next step would be. Share your answers with an adult.
Scenario 1: Some of your teammates are going to do some extra practice before an important game. But, they want to practice on Sunday morning, the same time that your family goes to church. You have to either talk to your parents about the extra practice or talk to your teammates about going to church. Which do you do?
Scenario 2: Everybody in your class brought in a baby picture to show on a bulletin board. During recess,before going outside, you and your friend hang back to poke holes in some of the pictures as a prank. When you arrive back in class, your teacher knows that your friend is one of the kids who stayed behind in the classroom. Your name hasn’t been mentioned. What do you do?
Scenario 3: A kid gets in an argument with you about a funny comment that you made about her in class. Angry, she gets loud about it. You turn to walk away. Yelling that you’re disrespecting her, she shoves you and hits you in the back. What do you do?
Scenario 4: Your best friend is struggling in math class and doesn’t want to get another bad grade. He asks you to help him cheat on today’s test. He’s never asked you to do that before. He knows it’s a big favor, but it’s what friends do. What do you do?
Scenario 5: Make up your own scenario!
