12And they told Mordecai what Esther had said. 13Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not think to yourself that in the king’s palace, you will escape any more than all the other Jews. 14For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
15Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, 16“Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” ~ Esther 4:12-16
Esther had to have been terrified to hear that the Jews would be destroyed, but even more so that Mordecai wanted her to go before the king without being called. I mean, Esther’s call was scary. She was basically playing with death. No matter which choice she chose, the outcome could have resulted in death, but she knew that if she brought it before God, that’s what would make the difference. If she had God on her side, how could she fail?
I learned three main things from reading these verses: 1st, no matter how high up you are in your field, no matter how important you are in your community, if you are a threat to the enemy, then you are at risk. 2nd, if you are called to do something, and you do not do it, God will rise up another because God’s overall will will be fulfilled. 3rd, there is power in fasting, no matter how short the fast is because there is strength in numbers. Esther called for every one of the Jews to fast alongside her. They didn’t fast 40 days, they didn’t fast 21 days, they only fasted 3 days, and that was enough.
I wonder how many more prayers would be answered if entire families came together in fasting and prayer for specific things, instead of one person fasting by themselves and keeping it to themselves. May we learn to fast as Esther and Mordecai did.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Fast Like Esther and Mordecai.
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