Here are a few discussion questions to get started. There are no right or wrong answers. Just share what you think, and then work your way down the page learning together!

• If you could have a CODE NAME, what would it be?
• If you could go on a SECRET MISSION, where would you want to go?
• If you could have ANY JOB someday, what would it be?
• Where does God have you right NOW, how could that be like your Mission? How can you represent God right where He has you now?
• Is it ever hard to speak up for what is right? Why is it hard?

King Xerxes got mad at his queen and wanted a new one, so he looked throughout the kingdom for a new one and chose a young girl named Esther. He didn't know she was a Jew, and that was the beginning of her adventure, when an evil advisor of the king put all the Jews in danger. Esther would end up showing the world the character she had.

Luke is keeping a video blog about what he’s learning. Lately, God’s been challenging him to work on his character. He tells stories about some of the ways he’s had to work on his character. He is learning that character is who you are when no one is looking.
2 Chronicles 16:9a  The Lord searches all the earth for people who have given themselves completely to him. He wants to make them strong.

Queen Esther was a peasant girl who had been chosen by the King to be queen because of her beauty. Esther was adopted by her cousin Mordecai because her parents died when she was very young. Mordecai told her to keep her Jewish heritage a secret since she was living in a foreign land where Jews were not treated well. He didn’t know if it was safe to share that information with a king who was often harsh with his people. (He had banished his previous queen over a very small offense.) When an evil government official named Haman who hated Jews wrote a law making it legal to kill Jews – and the king signed it – she was frightened, not only for her life, but for her people. Mordecai said something powerful to her. He knew that perhaps God had made her queen for this very reason – so she could speak to the king and save the Jews lives!

Explain that people could not just enter the throne room unannounced. To do so could result in imprisonment or death, even for a queen! If they wished to enter, the king had to extend his scepter to grant them permission. If he didn’t, they could be taken away by the guards. What would Queen Esther do?
Read: Esther 5:1-2
The king had to extend his scepter letting a guest know they had his permission to approach the throne. Esther had to take a great risk to go to the king, tell him she was Jewish, and hope that he would spare both her and her people
Because of God’s PLAN I can be CERTAIN.

You’ll often hear “Queen Esther was brave.” But I don’t think this is a story about bravery. Yes, of course, she was brave. But you can be brave and enter a pit of snakes. But
that would be foolish. Being brave is not enough. You can be brave and jump out of an airplane with no parachute. Brave? Yes. Smart? No. You could be brave and drink from a bottle of the hottest hot sauce you can buy at the store! Brave? Yes. Smart? No. There is something more important than Esther’s bravery. What matters is WHY Queen Esther was able to be brave. It was understanding that God had put her right where she was for a purpose. God took her from her village and placed her in the palace for a reason. It was because of God’s plan for her that she could be certain that God would be with her. She was brave because she knew God had her back.
READ AGAIN: (Above) Esther 4:14
Did you know that YOU TOO were born for a purpose? You were born when and where you are for a purpose!
READ: Job 14:5 

God chose WHEN you would live!
READ: Acts17:26

God chose WHERE you would live!
Not only that, but even when things aren’t looking good, it’s STILL a part of GOD’S PLAN! That is what we can cling to! That is why we can be CERTAIN even in UNCERTAIN times!
READ: Romans 8:28

And that is why because of God's PLAN, I can be CERTAIN!

THIS IS OUR THEME VERSE FOR THE ENTIRE SERIES! Work on memorizing this as a family. You have the entire series to work on it. Think of a reward for your family when you all have it memorized!

Jeremiah 29:11 is a very popular verse. It is taught and memorized by many, and for good reason. But seldom do pastors and teachers point out that it is a conditional promise. Do you know what a conditional promise is? An example would be when Mom or Day say, “I’ll let you stay up later if you clean your room.” Can you think of some other examples of conditional promises? They are promises that are made with a condition attached. It is important to point out that many verses in the Bible, such as Jeremiah 29:11, are part of a larger chapter. That’s why it is verse eleven. There are verses before and after it. This wonderful verse makes several promises. Plans to prosper you! Plans not to harm you! Plans to give you hope and a future! Wow, those are wonderful promises, aren't they? But they are not automatic. They are a result of a relationship with God. The next two verses describe that relationship. What does it look like?
• You will call on me.
• You will pray to me (and God will listen).
• You will seek me (and God will be found) IF
• You seek with all your heart.
THE POINT: If you want all those wonderful promises from God – good plans, prosperous plans, hope and a future – you have to do your part: Call on God, pray to God, seek Him with all your heart. It’s a relationship. It goes both ways.

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