Today is the holiday of Purim, which we celebrate at a time when the world continues to feel upside down. As the war with Iran goes on, we continue to be in close contact with partners and friends in Israel. We also pray for the safety of our Israeli family, the soldiers of the United States Armed Forces and the IDF, and all innocent civilians in the region.

Purim is a story about human agency in a seemingly unpredictable world. It is precisely when we are most uncertain around when and where our salvation will come from that we are called to step up, to act, and to be forces for good.

Last week, Rachel Goldberg-Polin joined host Dan Senor on the Call Me Back podcast and shared beautiful teachings about Purim. I encourage you to listen to the whole episode if you want a deep dive into the Purim story.

Two of Rachel’s messages really stuck with me.

The first is that the name of this holiday, Purim, is intentionally ironic. It comes from the Hebrew word for “lot” or “lottery,” because the King in the story decided which date to wipe out all the Jews through a lottery. It was totally random. So much in the Megillah — the Book of Esther — like so much of our lives, appears to be random.

But the deeper message of the story, which is the irony of the holiday’s name, is that there is more meaning to the apparent randomness of our lives if we look carefully.

In Rachel’s words, “You think this holiday is life, or this holiday is a lottery, but it’s anything but.” The belief here is that the message of Purim is to find the sacred in our lives and to seek the meaning and reason why we are exactly where we are at any point in our lives.

Then there is the implication of that message, which is to find our “Esther moment.” Purim teaches us, in Rachel’s words, “to stop dragging our feet, stop procrastinating, it’s time to fulfill our potential.”

She concludes, “I think the whole point of being here in this world, in this life, is figuring out how to create purpose with what we have been given.”

Sometimes we will be in situations or find ourselves with a mission that might feel daunting, or too big for us. Our challenge is to make sense of these moments.

What a powerful and empowering message, especially on a holiday and at a time in history that can feel so overwhelming. Even if we’re not yet sure how events will play out, this is our moment and our time.

This is our Esther moment.

Chag Purim Sameach! (Happy Purim!)