When God
gave a commandment in the beginning that a man should leave his mother and
father and 'cleave unto his wife' (Genesis 2:24) I believe that somehow this
became a very literal mandate for men, with women being given the advantage and
privilege of influence.....as was proven by Esther who saved her entire nation
from annihilation (Esther 8). What she did and how she did it defines the
nature of this influence.
Esther did
not rely on her beauty and her womanly wiles to convince King Xerxes not to
kill her people. She could have done that. The King was clearly smitten by her
to the point that he would have granted her every wish and given her even half
of his kingdom (Esther 5:3,6; 7:2). Instead of relying on her womanhood, Esther
employed God's assistance in her influence over the king. This is the privilege
of influence that God meant women to have, to influence men using their
spiritual sensitivities and make God the third party in their union.
Esther
designated a three day fast for all the Jews in the kingdom and offered two
banquets to the King and his right hand man Haman who was intent on Jewish
annihilation. The 24 hours in between those two banquets was crucial because
during that time the King had a sudden desire to read the records which threw a
light on the situation at hand. This desire was obviously inspired from above
(Esther 6). The fasting of Esther and her people brought the Lord into the
situation. It's a rather lengthy story but a highly entertaining one. The whole
event is celebrated even today among the Jews through the Feast of Purim all
because of the power of a righteous woman.
We are enjoying freedoms today never before known to women.
With this comes a great responsibility. Our influence knows no
bounds. We can tear down or build up. We can inspire or degrade. We can soften
men's hearts or lead them to destruction. We can lead them away from the truth
or bring them to God. Such is the power of women.
Mordecai, a relative who raised Esther, suggested to her
that she was probably raised up at that time to save her people, that she was
foreordained for such 'a time as this' (Esther 4:14). Esther in Persian tongue
means 'a star'. She honoured her name well for she was no doubt in
the realms of heaven when 'the morning stars sang together and all the sons of
God shouted for joy' (Job 38:7).
We, noble women of the covenant were there too,
foreordained for such a time as this, to lift humanity to higher ground, to
prepare for the great day of the Lord when He shall come in His glory to save
His people Israel. We were the morning stars sent to support, love and
influence our husbands, our sons and our brothers to be the sons of God
now and forever.
May we fulfil our sacred responsibility given us of God at
all cost and have the courage to be such women like Esther who went to the King
endangering her own life for the cause and said the most memorable words ever
spoken by a woman of courage: “If I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:16)
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
