Esther -The Hero

   ***Attention***  This month's devotional will be the last of the Refreshing Daily in God's Word. Starting in June this blog will have a new exciting format. Stay tuned for the official announcement.  

Bible Reading:  Esther 2:1-12

Key Verse: Verse 7 – “And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle's daughter: for she had neither father nor mother, and the maid was fair and beautiful; whom Mordecai, when her father and mother were dead, took for his own daughter.”

Key Words: And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther 

Everyone knows the story of Esther.  When my girls were growing up, she was one of their favorite Bible characters, if not their very favorite.

As you read the book of Esther, there are some noticeable things missing from the book.  First of all, God is never mentioned, neither is Jerusalem, the temple, nor is the law.

However, the Jews have always given the book of Esther a special place of honor.  When they gather together for the feasts and the name of Esther is read, all Jews will stand out of respect; but when they hear the name Haman, they show utter contempt.  Without a doubt, Esther was and is a hero to the Jewish people.

“A couple years ago the administrators of the Barron Prize for Young Heroes polled American teenagers and found only half could name a personal hero…Superman and Spiderman were named twice as often as Gandhi, Martin Luther King, or Lincoln. It is clear that our media make it all too easy for us to confuse celebrity with excellence; of the students who gave an answer, more than half named an athlete, a movie star, or a musician. One in ten named winners on American Idol as heroes.” ~ Scott LaBarge,

Nowadays teens are even more likely to name a famous TikToker, Instagram model, YouTuber or even a video game character more than statesmen, authors, painters, musicians, architects, doctors, and astronauts.  Heroes and heroines created by our society are people who have made it big, but not necessarily people who have done big things.

Esther didn’t just make it big, she did something big.  So you may want to add Esther to your list of heroes for she is certainly worthy.  

                                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:

            ✞ If you want to be a hero, don’t just aim to make it to the big time, plan on doing big things.