“Nothing is more expensive than a missed opportunity.” — H. Jackson Brown JR.

There are people who could have been successful businesspersons in life, but they failed. Some could have been in very happy relationships, but they are not.
This is because some of them did not seize the opportunities that came their way. I found some very interesting thoughts from a story of Esther, and this week I will share the importance of seizing the moment.

The story is generally a simple one: King Ahasuerus organised a feast, “For six months he put on exhibition the huge wealth of his empire and its stunningly beautiful royal splendours”, (Esther 1:4) (MSG).

Towards the end of the party, the King requested the presence of the Queen Vashti. “But Queen Vashti refused to come at the King’s command brought by his eunuchs; therefore, the King was furious, and his anger burned within him”. Esther 1:12 (NKJV).
The King was then advised to divorce the Queen. The King could not overcome the loneliness and had to be advised to look for a replacement. This ushered the story of

Esther. This is what I noted which might be of help to you.

Pride precedes a fall

Queen Vashti lost the crown and a marriage because of pride. She simply declined to honour the King. Never take anyone for granted. Marriages have been lost because of people who take their husbands or wives for granted.
Relationships have been broken because of people who take their boyfriends or girlfriends for granted. The same applies to any sphere of life. Some people lost their jobs because they did not want to be humble for a few seconds.

No one wants to be taken for granted. It’s often said that, “You will never know the value of what you have until you have lost it”.  You lose nothing by being humble. What we do in a matter of minutes can affect the rest of our lives.
The Queen’s decision to refuse to come might have been done in a matter of minutes but it cost her dearly. Consider your steps daily and always look for opportunities for redress.

Someone’s loss is someone’s gain
This is a harsh reality. Inasmuch as funeral parlours might sympathise with you for your bereavement, they usually come up with an invoice for them to assist you to remove, wash, dress, embalm and bury your loved ones.

The dethronement of Vashti created a vacancy for a Queen. “Then the King’s servants who attended him said: “Let beautiful young virgins be sought for the King; (2:2) . . .
“Then let the young woman who pleases the King be Queen instead of Vashti. This thing pleased the King, and he did so” (2:4) (NKJV). Esther took advantage of the opportunity that had arisen and she became her best.

Always look for opportunities in life. Success is simply meeting human problems. The quantity and quality of the problems you are solving determines your success in life.

What human problems are you solving?

Sometimes opportunities do not  appear twice in life
If Vashti had not been dethroned, there could not have been a vacancy. The fact that there was such an opportunity meant that there was need to take advantage of it.
Do not take opportunities for granted. Sometimes there might not be a repeat of the same. Do not ever think that opportunities are waiting for you alone. There is someone who might be going for exactly what you want.

Alexander Graham Bell presented and patented his telephone invention on February 14 1876, just hours before another application was submitted by Elisha Gray for a similar device. Imagine, if Bell had decided to delay.
He would not have secured the credit for the invention of the telephone.

Bury procrastination before procrastination buries your opportunities
Do not look down upon yourself “And Mordecai had brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter, for she had neither father nor mother.” (2:7).
Esther was an orphan and this could have been a very good ground for disqualifying herself from the race for the Crown. You can change your fortunes if you decide to believe in yourself and go for your purpose.

Stop complaining about your past. Start moving and grab opportunities that come your way. Sir Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, told us that, “a man owes very little to what he is born with — a man is what he makes of himself”.

You can change your life in seconds.

This is a product of the decisions that you take in life. Esther turned from being an orphan to being a Queen of Persia. She made a decision not to look down upon herself and to become the best she could be.
You can change your life when you make the right decisions towards your destiny. The quality of decisions that you make in life determines the quality of life that you live. Exploit every second into making wise decisions for your future.

Be teachable
Esther was open to learning. “Esther had not revealed her people or family, for Mordecai had charged her not to, Rev (2:10) (NKJV). This later on helped her when the time came for her to be an intercessor for the Jewish people.

• Arthur Marara is an attorney, author and motivational speaker. Kindly send your feedback to info@greatnesstrust.com or join him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.