Life Lessons from Esther

Esther is one of my favorite Bible books. How about you? Not only is it a wonderful story, it has some practical lessons for us. I have found five to share with you. I would love it if you would find a few and share them with me!

Esther is unique in that it never mentions God! So, we see God working behind the scenes. We see him at work in people such as Mordecai who was clearly devout in his faith. The book provides some riveting drama as the conflict unfolds and then is finally resolved.

Five lessons for us

Don’t blame things on coincidence!

Esther was chosen as queen because the deposed queen offended the king. Esther (a Jew) just happened to be in the kingdom, away from Israel, during this time. She just happened to be added to the pool of potential wives for the king and just happened to be chosen as queen.

No, she didn’t. This was all orchestrated by God.

Your life is orchestrated by God. He is even able to take your bad decisions and give them a good outcome. Following Jesus allows us the confidence to know that the things happen to us in order to open up every opportunity to serve and make a profound difference.

Pride and Hatred go Hand in Hand

Haman was full of himself – and he hated everyone who didn’t pay him homage. He was a narcissist. That pride made him despise those who would not honor him. He gathered his family around so he could brag about how great he was!

Will you believe me when I say that no one wants to be around you if all you can do is talk about yourself? Eventually, pride will lead you to a point where you will hate people because they don’t like you anymore!  

Risk is Required

Life is full of risk. Esther risked her life to approach the king about the danger that Haman’s plot posed to her and her people. There was an absolute rule that you didn’t approach the king uninvited. The penalty was death. The only hope was that the king would grant mercy.

Esther approached the king anyway. He granted her an audience.

When we follow Jesus, he will lead us into risky places. It is what he does to make us into who he wants us to be! And, even when it’s risky, follow anyway!

Hatred is Repaid

Haman ended up dead – hung on the gallows he erected for his enemy. There is justice in life. God makes things right. We don’t always get to witness that justice, but we know the character of God. He is always true to his word.

Of course, the other side of this is that we know that if we harbor hatred, we will suffer in the end. Let’s not go there.

Do the Right Thing

It’s never right to attempt to destroy people you don’t like. Xenophobia has been around forever (or at least as long as mankind). This attempt to destroy the Jews failed miserably. In fact, the Jews were able to destroy those who sought their destruction.

Doing the wrong thing was disastrous for Haman and his family. So, do the right thing instead!

Doing the right thing is a reward in itself. When we do the right thing we can live with a clear conscience. Do the next thing God asks you to do and you can have peace every day.

Your Turn

What lessons did you learn from reading this book? I would love to hear from you. Share your comments below or on our Facebook page.

Now available is the complete: Transformational Life Lessons from the Bible in Kindle format. Click here for more information.