For Such a Time as This (Esther 4)

Esther and Mordecai are living in a world that is overtly hostile. "The Jews are a small minority in the Persian Empire and are potentially vulnerable. A second given is the arbitrariness of Persian laws in general and Haman's decree in particular. Such a law cannot be revoked. And with Haman at the helm, there is no doubt that it will be executed thoroughly...

A third given is the social code of the period. The palace has a particular rule of conduct. A constant series of royal laws suggests how hidebound life in the palace is. In addition the wider social code assumes a number of static relationships such as the low status of women." (Wells, 55)

But Mordecai will call Esther to think of all of these obstacles as gifts! "Take your femininity, your long training in the harem, your vulnerability, your membership of the Jewish people – givens that may seem challenging or unjust – and treat them as gifts by incorporating them into the larger story of saving your people. [And] each of these apparent givens does indeed become a gift in the course of Esther's sequence of banquets for and petitions to the king." (Wells 56)

The weak and foolish things of the world are precisely what God uses in salvation to shame the wise and powerful!