| Romans 8:28 – “We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” |
Have you ever encountered life and wondered where God is when you need him?
Most of those moments come when you are close to the end of your rope.
You need a little help, but God doesn’t seem to show up.
I think that’s the feeling you would get during the time of Esther.
You may remember the little story of Esther.
The Jews were facing extermination from a scheming political henchman named Haman. If he completed his plan, the Jews would cease to exist. Where was God when you needed him?
But there was more.
King Xerxes of Persia had banished his wife, so he started looking for a new queen.
He found a girl, a Jewish girl, named Esther, who became queen. She must have wondered about her fate at the hands of a tyrant like Xerxes. Where is God when you need him?
Esther’s uncle Mordecai, who had raised her as a child, put a lot of weight on her shoulders. You have to intervene. To engage the king unbidden was a sure death sentence. It was a dilemma. Where is God when you need him?
Strange things were happening.
Mordecai overheard an assassination plot and reported it.
The king had a sleepless night and decided to read of the accomplishments of his reign. In it, he ran across the name of Mordecai and his faithfulness.
Tables turned, and the gallows Haman had built for Mordecai became the instrument of his own death.
The people were saved.
I ask the question “where is God when you need him?” because of a curious anomaly in the book of Esther. For a Bible book, it never mentions God by name.
Is God there? Where is he?
Is he not with Mordecai? With Esther? With the Jews?
Was he not working in sleepless nights and random events?
Whenever we start to think “where is God when I need him?” the answer is: he is here. He works behind the scenes. Or as Paul said, “We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28, ESV)
Just because you don’t see God’s hand does not mean it is not moving.
Trust God to do as He will, and we will be fine. God is always there when we need him.
- Robert G. Taylor
robertgtaylor.com
