I am on a college-visit road trip this week with my daughter Elizabeth. It’s an emotional time for me! And personally, when I get emotional, anxiety is lurking just around the corner. Of course, my observant spiritual Enemy knows this about me. So, he took every opportunity he could to poke at that tendency, including, but not limited to, car problems 7.5 hours from home—and 7.5 hours from our destination. For me, this spiritual battle with anxiety is my heart vacillating between fearing the worst-case scenarios and wholeheartedly trusting a sovereign King and loving Father with my life. The better, wiser perspective is obvious—simple, but not easy.
This week’s Bible story from the book of Esther is uniquely cool for several reasons: 1. The name of God is not mentioned anywhere in the text—although His fingerprints are all over it. 2. The hero is a heroine! 3. It raises all kinds of contemporary cultural issues for us to ponder (e.g., society’s emphasis on physical beauty, government corruption, gender roles, civil disobedience, racial oppression). 4. The narrative contains some of the best and most ironic plot twists of all time.
But best of all, the book of Esther is a study of trusting God’s loving sovereignty in the face of literally the worst-case scenario. I encourage you to curl up by the fire this weekend and read this short story. Notice all the places where crucial events “just so happened…” Notice God, at work, behind the scenes, directing things to work out exactly opposite of what you’d expect.
He is trustworthy. When we can’t see how something can possibly be “for our best,” we can rest in the wisdom and care of our God. He never takes His eye off you. Your circumstances may be out of your control—but they are never out of His. He’s got this.
Praying as we wrestle between fear and trust,
