The headlines are full of news — both good and bad — about how conservative pundit Tucker Carlson was ousted from his job at Fox News recently. Speculation abounds about what Carlson will do, how (or if) he will move forward, and how successful he may (or may not) be at whichever road he chooses.

But even though such a high-profile ousting has occurred, we as the people of God shouldn’t think it a rarity when anybody is ousted.

I’m not saying that Carlson’s situation is (or is not) from God. I have not formed an opinion of any kind about his situation. But today I want to use the situation as an illustration to encourage each of us to think about God’s ways — especially those ways that we don’t like.

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The fact is:

Sometimes, God allows people to be ousted from places where they wanted to remain.

In our human tendencies and frailties, we often tend to think that the places we are in at any given moment are God’s best for us. For example:

• You may love your church and want to stay there forever.
• You may enjoy your job and want nothing more than to stay in your current position.
• You may be willing to endure an abusive marriage, all in the name of not rocking the boat.

But then, along comes the unexpected:

• People in your church turn against you viciously and unexpectedly. Suddenly, you find yourself in a position of having to leave that church in order to preserve your mental health.
• Layoffs happen, and the job you loved gets cut. You’re out of work — and you didn’t even have any warning that you would be jobless.
• Your spouse’s affair comes to light when he or she serves you with surprise divorce papers. You weren’t happy in your marriage, but you comforted yourself by saying that “at least I’m not divorced.” Now, you’re suddenly cut adrift, and you have to start again.

Beloved, all of these kinds of “ousters” can be very painful. However, God always knew they would happen — and sometimes they are actually His will.

Oh, people’s sin is never His will. He didn’t tell the church people to lie about you. He didn’t command your spouse to cheat. God cannot be tempted, and He cannot and does not tempt anyone to evil.

But the question remains: Why does God allow you to be ousted from things sometimes, when you didn’t want to leave?

As usual, we should find our answers in Scripture. And if we look across the pages of Scripture, consider the following:

God drew Abraham (Abram, at the time) out of his prosperous home and family situation in the city of Ur of the Chaldeans.

God ordered Abram to leave his entire family behind except his wife. (Abram didn’t obey; he took his nephew Lot with him, which caused him a lot of trouble later.)

But why did God oust Abram from a prosperous and comfortable situation? Because God needed Abraham to possess a different land — and Abraham needed to be in that land in order for the Lord to set him apart and make him a great nation.

God also called Paul — most unexpectedly, at that! — out of his pharisaical life of persecuting Christians.

When Christ met Paul on the road to Damascus, He didn’t ask Paul if he would potentially like a career change. He didn’t kindly inquire as to whether or not Paul would like to abandon his home, make a lot of enemies, travel for a living, and get stoned, flogged, imprisoned, and persecuted. He simply called Paul; and, in that moment of calling, He thrust the most notable apostle of all time out into the harvest field.

But wow, what an unexpected (and violent!) ouster it was!

What about Daniel and the three Hebrew boys (who later became Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego)?

They were violently and brutally removed from Jerusalem as prisoners of war! They were given into the care of the chief of eunuchs, so they were likely castrated and became eunuchs themselves. What a travesty; what a life-shattering and heart-shattering circumstance!

Yet, we read that the Lord allowed this to happen:

In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the articles of the house of God, which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the articles into the treasure house of his god (Daniel 1:1–2 NKJV).

Friend, the long and the short of it is that God sometimes allows us to be ousted from things for our own good — and for the sake of His kingdom.

You may have been content where you were, but the Lord allowed you to be ousted. I know it hurts, but maybe (like Daniel) God has kings for you to advise in a different place.

Maybe, like the three Hebrew boys who stood for God even when cast into the fiery furnace, God wants to use you to bring a whole nation to the knowledge of the One True God.

Maybe, just maybe, the Lord allowed you to be ousted from your job so you could build a prosperous business. Maybe only He knows that you’ll be the CEO of your own multi-million-dollar corporation in ten years, sitting in the high-rise office building and enjoying having the corner office all to yourself.

And maybe God allowed you to be ousted from that church because you always would have been happy there. However, outside the doors of that church, God is going to allow you to disciple nations and fulfill every dream He has ever had for you and your ministry.

I don’t know … but God does. And I would like to remind you of this scripture today:

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28 NKJV).

I don’t know what’s going to happen to Tucker Carlson after his dramatic ouster. But I do know what’s going to happen to YOU as a result of any ouster you’ve been through:

• God’s going to work it out for your good.
• He’s going to use you to take new territory for His kingdom.
• He’s going to bless you and prosper you as long as you continue seeking Him first and following Him with everything you’ve got.

An ouster may not feel good in the moment, but God has a plan and a purpose for everything He does — and for everything He allows.

Be encouraged today; our God who knows you best and loves you most is still hiding you in the palm of His hand.

Have you been ousted from something that was important to you? If so, what is the Lord speaking to you about that situation right now? Leave a comment below!

Jamie Rohrbaugh is the founder and CEO of From His Presence. She is the author of Getting to Know the Sevenfold Holy Spirit, and she seeks to equip you to carry His manifest glory everywhere you go. Her resources have been published by YouVersion Bible Plans and in Charisma magazine, as well as on The Elijah List, Spirit Fuel, and various other ministry outlets. You can find free mentoring on her podcast, Take Your Territory with Jamie Rohrbaugh, which is available through your favorite podcast streaming app. Download her free prayer tool, Praying the Names of God: 555 Biblical Names of God and How to Use Them in Prayer and Worship, here. Photo Credit: Getty Images.