Everything in your life has led to this moment. Let that thought soak in for a moment. Some of what led you here has required careful and thoughtful planning, and of course there are the critical turns in the journey that you never could have orchestrated. Whatever the road that led you here, your leadership is a result of the trials, successes, and failures that have been unique to your journey. The question in front of you today is simple: what will you do with the opportunity you have been given in this moment?
Around 480 BC, during the height of the Persian empire, King Xerxes decided to conduct a search of the entire realm for a new queen. After evaluating and screening the finest the world had to offer, he chose a Jewish woman named Esther. The Jewish people at that time were living scattered across Assyria, having been forced out of Israel after years of rebelling against the former Babylonian empire. While the Persian empire generally allowed religious freedom, Esther was careful to keep her faith hidden from the political spotlight of the empire. Even still, Esther was raised very much immersed in her Jewish faith, having been raised by her uncle, Mordecai.
Shortly after Esther’s ascension to the throne, Mordecai fell into a conflict with one of Xerxes’s advisors who had considerable influence in the empire and with the king. This advisor, Haman, became so angry with Mordecai that he devised a plan to have him killed. Haman used his influence to trick the king into signing an edict that would result in the complete genocide of every Jewish person in the empire. Mordecai found out about Haman’s plan and sent warning to the queen. He also asked her to intercede with the king on behalf of her people.
Esther was initially reluctant to approach the king. Not only would she have to reveal her hidden heritage, but simply approaching the king uninvited was also an act that could mean her death. Still, Mordecai persisted, and he delivered a line that still resonates with me every time I read it: “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?”
Mordecai understood something several hundred years ago that still holds true for you today: Everything in your life has led to this moment and now it is your time to lead. The question is whether you can recognize this moment, and will you have the courage to do what needs to be done? The words, the musings, and the teachings in this book are designed to level up your leadership, but I cannot be the one to act on your behalf. You must be the one to do what no one else is willing to do.
When I look back at my own journey, I can remember the moments when the opportunity has come for me to rise to the occasion. These moments are very rarely born out of great circumstances, but rather are brought about during seasons of extreme difficulty and uncertainty. I have marveled how individuals with loads of bravado during high times are often the most absent during times of difficulty. There are truly only a few brave souls who have the grit to continue to lead in the darkest of moments.
Today I want you to consider whether you have come into this place in your life for such a time as this. Sure, it’s much more peaceful to sit back in the relative peace of the royal palace, but I know that the heart of the true leader yearns to be free from complacency. If you turn away now, will you spend the rest of your life wondering what could’ve been? Sometimes the joy of success lies just beyond the fear of taking the first step.
