Lessons from Esther's Unexpected Trials
Have you ever found yourself in a season you never saw coming? I remember the moment my phone rang. I answered cheerfully, but the voice on the other end instantly changed my day. That call put me in the middle of a serious situation that I never expected. My friend was crying on the other end of the phone. Between sobs, she confessed to a crime that she had committed. As she explained what she had done, I sat in stunned silence. Inside my head, my own voice was screaming, “I don’t want to hear these words. I don’t want to know this!” For many days following that call, my life changed. I was issued a subpoena, and found myself standing in court before jurors, lawyers, and judges, answering questions I never wanted to answer. Because of the emotional difficulty of the situation, I was assigned a court-appointed advocate. Sometimes the unexpected does not initially arrive as suffering. It arrives as a responsibility. A burden suddenly appears, and it requires courage you are not sure you have.
Esther, in the Bible, understood this kind of unexpected season. She was a Jewish orphan living in exile, raised by her cousin Mordecai after her parents' death. Nothing about her early life suggested she would one day stand in a palace as queen. Yet suddenly, everything changed. King Ahasuerus searched for a new queen, and beautiful Esther was taken into the palace. What appeared to be favor eventually became a heavy responsibility. A decree was issued to destroy the Jewish people. Esther now faced an impossible situation. She could remain silent and protect herself or approach the king to plead for her people. Approaching the king without invitation could result in death. Fear would have been completely understandable. Silence would have been much easier and safer.
But Mordecai challenged Esther with words that still echo through Scripture: “And who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14). In other words, what if God positioned you there for that very moment? Esther probably never imagined that becoming queen would require this kind of courage. Yet God often reveals the purpose of a season only when the moment arrives. Then it demands faith and obedience.
Before approaching the king, Esther called for fasting and prayer. She understood that the weight of her assignment required complete dependence on God. Esther made one of the most powerful statements of surrender, “And if I perish, I perish.” (Esther 4:16). These were not words of hopelessness but of surrender. She put her future in God’s hands and trusted Him with the outcome. God honored her courage.
The king extended mercy toward Esther. Haman’s evil plan was exposed, and the Jewish people were preserved. What looked like an impossible situation became a testimony of God’s sovereignty and deliverance. One of the greatest lessons in Esther's story is that God was working long before Esther understood why. He was working when she lost her parents. He was working when she entered the palace. He was working when she felt invisible among foreign people. Even the qualities that caused the king to notice her were part of God's greater plan. The unexpected position as queen eventually revealed an unexpected purpose. Esther’s life reminds us that God often places people strategically before they understand the reason. Sometimes the season you question today becomes the very place God uses tomorrow to impact others.
Before the crisis, Esther knew about God. Through the crisis, she came to know God intimately as Protector, Deliverer, Sustainer, and Sovereign King.
The pressure she faced revealed the depth of her faith. Trials have a way of exposing what is truly in our hearts. Esther’s response demonstrated a healthy fear of God and a willingness to obey Him regardless of the personal cost.
LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT
Many people today carry unexpected responsibilities. Some are leading families through difficult seasons. Others are facing challenges they never planned for. Some are standing in positions where obedience is costly and courage feels difficult. Esther’s story reminds us that God does not position people accidentally. The place you are in may feel overwhelming, but God sees the full picture of what you cannot yet see.
Like Esther, a right heart responds to unexpected responsibility with surrender. It seeks God before reacting and chooses courage even when obedience feels uncomfortable. God often does His greatest work through ordinary people who choose faithfulness when the moment arrives.
Esther could not control the crisis around her, but she could choose faithfulness within it. And because she did, generations were impacted.
PRAYER
Father, help me trust You when seasons are overwhelming. Give me courage when fear tries to silence me. Help me seek You first and to surrender my plans, and even my fears, into Your hands. Remind me that You are sovereign over every season and that You are able to use my life for purposes far greater than I can currently see. Amen.
Colette Fabry is the founder of A Right Heart Ministries, where she and her staff assist grieving individuals, guiding them to recognize God as the healer of all brokenness. Colette is the owner of Rochester Anger Management, a company dedicated to providing hope and healing for those in need. She holds a Masters degree in counseling and theology, and is nationally certified in conflict resolution as well as grief and loss. For the past 28 years, Colette has successfully taught problem-solving and strategies to overcome everyday obstacles. Colette is wife, mother of three sons, grandmother, a nationally known speaker and author. She enjoys reading, studying, writing and says God’s greatest accomplishment in her life has been raising her sons. She cherishes time spent with her grandchildren.
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Sharon W. Betters is a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, pastor’s wife, and cofounder of MARKINC Ministries, where she is the Director of Resource Development. Sharon is the author of several books, including Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace. She is the co-host of the Help & Hope podcast and writes Daily Treasure, an online devotional.
Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.