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Theme: Doing What’s Right- God Calls His People
- Joshua 1:9 says we should be strong, courageous, and not 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 death.
Esther 4:14 ends with, “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” 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 choices will pit what you want to do against what you know is right. Like Esther, you might be afraid of where some of your decisions could lead. In Deuteronomy 31:6, God promises to go with you and never leave you. When we choose to go where God leads, we can courageously 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 your next step. Share your answers with an adult.
Scenario 1: Some of your teammates will do some extra practice before an important game. But they want to practice when your family attends church on Sunday morning. You have to either talk to your parents about the extra practice or your teammates about attending church. What do you do?
Scenario 2: Everybody in your class brought a baby picture to show on a school bulletin board. During recess, you and your friend hang back to poke holes in some of the photos as a prank before going outside. When you return to 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 argues with you about a funny comment 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!
