Here I Am!

With over a decade of non-profit experience in multiple roles, Yael Eckstein has the rare distinction of being a woman leading one of the world’s largest religious charitable organizations. She is the 2023 recipient of the Jerusalem Post’s Humanitarian Award, and in 2020 and 2021, was named to the publication’s list of 50 Most Influential Jews. The following devotion is from her March 2, 2026, article found at Christianpost.com, “Jewish holiday Purim reminds us not to give up — especially when evil is winning.”

Purim is one of the most dramatic stories in the Bible. At first glance, it looks like a tragedy waiting to unfold — an evil decree, a threatened people, and a future that seemed sealed in darkness. But Purim reminds us of something vital: we never know the end of the story until it’s truly over.

What looked like certain destruction became a story of redemption, because Esther and Mordechai refused to give in to despair. They did not wait passively for light to appear. They acted with courage, and because they did, the story ended in victory.

That is the heart of Purim. It teaches us that even when everything looks bleak, God is still writing the story. And until He has finished, it’s not over — and it will not end until it is good.

What defines Esther for me is the word hineni: “here I am.”

Esther did not ask to be queen. She did not want the position she was placed in. She was young, afraid, and living in a palace that was not her home. Yet God put her there for a reason.

When Mordechai told her, “You were brought to the kingdom for such a time as this,” she understood something profound. She knew she had a role to play. She could choose fear, or she could choose faith. She could hide, or she could stand up and say, “Here I am.”

Hineni is not a word of comfort. It is a word of courage. It means: Here I am, even though I am afraid. Here I am, even though the outcome is uncertain. Here I am, ready to do what is right, even when it is hard.

Not everyone in the Purim story was Esther. But everyone had a part. Some prayed and fasted. Each person stepped forward in the way they could. And because they did, the story ended in victory, not destruction.

Living in Israel during these past years of war has made the message of Purim painfully real. There is constant uncertainty. We do not know what tomorrow will bring. We hear threats from Iran. We face the possibility of further conflict. We live with questions that have no easy answers.

But what sustains me is this: it’s not over until it’s good. God brings goodness in the end. Our job is to say “hineni” in the meantime.

...Every Purim, I ask myself two questions. I believe they are questions for all of us, no matter where we live or what faith we come from.

First: Where am I beginning to fall into despair? Where have I started to believe that the story is over, that nothing can change, that darkness will win? Purim reminds us that even when everything looks bleak, God is still working. The story is still unfolding, and the ending is not yet written.

Second: Where am I being called? Each of us has a place where God is whispering, “Where are you?” And each of us has a moment to say, “Here I am.”

...Purim teaches us that God’s redemption often begins in the darkest chapters. It teaches us that courage can change the course of history. It teaches us that when we step forward—when we refuse despair, when we choose hope, when we say “here I am”—God meets us there.

---

This Sunday, March 8, we will continue our series “Step Out in Faith!” with the thrilling account of “ESTHER: Faith to Save a Nation!” (Esther 4:1-14). Please invite someone to join you in the building or online for the Live broadcast on either Facebook (Honolulu AG) or our YouTube channel (Honolulu Assembly of God). We Livestream every Sunday to both locations and would love to have you join us – either in person or online!

The “Celebration of Life” service for Gloria Chang is this Saturday, March 7, at 10am here at Honolulu AG and will be followed by lunch in the church Fellowship Hall. (Note: There will be no “Drive-Through” Prayer this month.)

Aloha ke Akua!