For Such a Time

Our time in the Wisdom texts comes to an end this week in the book of Esther. While you might assume we’ll be focusing on Mordecai’s oft-quoted declaration to Esther, “Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this” (Esther 4:14), Mordecai’s words occur three chapters earlier than today’s text. Today, we read about how Esther takes the wisdom behind Mordecai’s words to heart and acts on them with courage and honesty. We learn from Esther that God’s uncommon wisdom demands reflection and action.

For the worship planner, this text and this week’s title give us a lot to work with. Lean into representations of time in your space. Include signs and sounds of the changing seasons. Draw attention to the clocks in our pockets, on our computers, on the walls that we might not even notice anymore. Challenge the tyranny of the clock, but also, perhaps, reframe the clock as an invitation to be attentive to the present moment—to listen to wisdom now and act on Wisdom’s guidance.

Consider, too, how Esther’s story illustrates what wisdom calls us to do—to act with courage, to demand justice, to advocate for accountability. Where in your neighborhood do you need courageous voices to speak? Where do your neighbors need the church to show up and demand justice? Where does your church need to hold itself accountable for past and present injustices? Wisdom persistently knocks at our door with these questions and more. How will you enliven these questions within your congregation? Though some of these questions feel appropriate to a prayer of confession—and they certainly are—perhaps this is a week to intentionally engage in intercessory prayer. In intercessory prayer, we answer God’s call to pray for our neighbors and world. Yet, through intercessory prayer, we also open ourselves to receive God’s wisdom, to know how we might be called to be the answer to prayer for and with our neighbors. Consider, then, how the prayers of the people might include a time for listening to Wisdom’s call, for reflecting and noticing where God might be directing the church to act, for committing to choose to live out God’s uncommon wisdom in your community. Because no matter where you are, no matter what is happening in our world, God’s wisdom calls us to listen, to notice, and to enact God’s love in our world for such a time as this.