Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This young woman, who was also known as Esther, had a lovely figure and was beautiful. Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died.
- Esther 2:7

Esther has several things going against her in this story. She and her people are living in exile in Persia. They don’t have access to the resources and blessings that benefitted their ancestors. And, on top of that, Esther is an orphan.

That’s one side of the scale.

But Esther also has several significant things going for her. She has Mordecai, her cousin who cares about her enough to take responsibility for her and who models a life of faith for her to see. Today’s passage also tells us that Esther “had a lovely figure and was beautiful.”

Last week, we talked about the things that were set against us and beyond our control. Here we see the things God has sovereignly set in place on the ‘plus’ side of the scale in order for Esther to play a key role in his big redemptive story.

For every good work God gives us to do, he’s given us gifts – things we didn’t give ourselves – so we can do what he’s prepared for us to do. Friendships. Mentors. Circumstances and happenstances. Passions, innate interests, and natural abilities. There’s so much that’s beyond our control and sovereignly orchestrated to bless us and others through us.

Take stock of what God’s given you today. Where has God gifted you to play a part in his redemptive story? What has God given you?