Often, my days have been marked by waiting. Waiting to grow-up so I could move away. Waiting on the latest iPhone. Waiting on college admissions responses. Waiting on a husband. Waiting on military orders. Waiting in the check-out line. Waiting for babies. Waiting to be closer to family. Waiting for doctor’s appointments. Waiting for a call-back. Waiting for deployments to end. Waiting for a big idea. Waiting for the next thing that’s going to fix everything and infuse purpose into my life.

Because surely, days spent in line at the grocery store, walking dogs, serving in the nursery, and making dinners aren’t the days God had in mind when He created me. Surely there was a different, a better, a grander plan than this one.

So I wait.

I do what I must, but deep in my heart, I wait for God to come and, like the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella, poof me into the life He really created me for. Realistically, if He could just send one of His servants to whisk me away to the life He wanted for me, I would be content. No magic wand is actually needed.

But in quiet moments when I’m listening for His voice, when I’m seeking His heart in prayer, I hear the words spoken to Esther echoing in my head.

Esther knew all about waiting, praying, begging, God for another to do the work He had handed her. In a twisted Cinderella story, her life as an orphan was changed forever when the king mandated that she be brought to the palace and later, chose to marry her. But then, her people, the Jews, were the target of a massive genocide.

She was in a position to help, a position to plead at the feet of the king on behalf of her people, but knew that it might cost her her very life. She was prepared to look the other way until her uncle stopped her and asked if perhaps she’d been given her position for just this moment.

These words stop me in my tracks as I wait in line at the grocery store.

Was I born for this moment right here?

Maybe all of the waiting, all of the hoping and pining for me real purpose was causing me to miss out.

What if each and every moment God has ordained for me to walk this earth isn’t just about waiting for the next big thing or even for eternity with Him but is infused with profound purpose?

What if I was created to be a daughter for just this moment?

What if I was put in my marriage for just this moment?

What if I was put into a friendship for just this moment?

I am done with living unintentionally. I’m done with trusting that God will raise someone else to do the hard, messy work of life. Not because I’m done trusting that God can raise someone, but because I’m done assuming that person isn’t me.

How many moments have I missed because I have been waiting for someone else to do the hard work? How many opportunities have passed me by while I prayed for God to send someone?

Friends, we need to stop waiting and start assuming that God has put us where we are for His purposes.

Like Joan of Arc bravely declaring, “I am not afraid. I was born to do this,” so we too should boldly go into our days. Because, if we’re honest, sometimes our fears are not the big moments but are that we’ll get lost in the mundane. We don’t see our work as important because we don’t even see opportunities for stepping out in faith.

But maybe today, my holy, dignified work is the work of feeding my family. Maybe I was created for the moment when I smiled and told little ears in the nursery that Jesus loved them. What if the women in line at the grocery store needed prayer that I was placed there to give her? I know that, just as Esther was reminded by Mordecai, God’s purposes will prevail with, or without, my willingness to serve.

Your moments today are not an accident, they’re inspired and divine. Use them as such. Offering your willing hands to the Lord for His service and trust that He is working the small, insignificant moments into monuments for His glory. Trust in faith, just as Esther did with each and every step she took toward the throne room to plead for her people, that God is in your midst. He is reclaiming your moments, guiding your steps, and shaping your heart.

Because this moment today, you were born for it.

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