WS Update: Triumph and Hope

January 30, 2023

As we wrapped up our sermon series on the book of Esther yesterday (listen to the sermon here), it’s allowed us to reflect on some of the hard questions about life in this world. How do we live as people in a world in which you feel small and powerless, at the mercy of higher forces that often threaten to bring you down? How do we live with hope and faith in a world in which evil seems ever-present and God seems absent?

The book of Esther teaches us that God is present and at work, not just in Exodus-like ways of miracles and signs and wonders, but also in Esther-like ways of quiet providence that are sometimes hard to see. But whatever the means, God is working to bring about the ultimate triumph of justice over wrong, of good over evil.

It was this belief in God’s greater power and good purposes that gave Esther the faith and courage to call for a community-wide fast and risk her life for others. Her strength and resolve came from her own resources but from her trust in who God was and what he promised to do for his people. And God used this crisis in her life to stretch her into a woman of greatness.

No matter how overwhelmed or disheartened you may feel, let us take heart. God is at work in our lives and all around us, even when you can’t see what he’s doing or understand what he’s up to. He is committed to his people who have committed their lot to him, and he has shown us this most of all in Jesus.

So let us awaken our faith and trust in the Lord, who hears our cries and turns our fasting into feasting. May our strength and hope be renewed to push back against the darkness and to serve others with faith and courage. And may we keep our eyes ever on the ultimate deliverance when Jesus wipes away every tear from our eyes and all our mourning and crying will be swallowed up in joy.


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