Esther again pleaded with the king, falling at his feet and weeping. She begged him to put an end to the evil plan of Haman the Agagite, which he had devised against the Jews. Then the king extended the gold scepter to Esther and she arose and stood before him. “If it pleases the king,” she said, “and if he regards me with favor and thinks it the right thing to do, and if he is pleased with me, let an order be written overruling the dispatches that Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, devised and wrote to destroy the Jews in all the king’s provinces. For how can I bear to see disaster fall on my people? How can I bear to see the destruction of my family?”

Many times, one of the major benefits of going through intense trails and strong persecution is the growth that it produces in us. Esther has had a change of heart now, compared to the first time when Mordecai charged her to act. Her first response was to worry about her own life out of fear.

But now, she does not worry, she just acts righteously from the start. For me, this is a recurring theme. God wants to grow me more into his image, and so he lets me draw close to him in tragedy. He does this so that I will learn to trust him more and will obey without hesitation.

When we truly trust that God is working all things for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose, we can truly live without fear. Esther now lives this way because she has seen God’s hand in the midst of her life.

Lord, teach me to trust you enough to obey you immediately. Help me to look to you for the answers to my problems. You can and will come to the rescue!