Esther 4:12-17; 1 Corinthians 13:1-8

Intro – It is officially our first Sunday in Lent and we are again returning to the story of Esther a

woman whose fast is legendary within the Jewish community because it prepared her to

advocate on behalf of her people and stop a genocide.

Exegesis

Story of Esther –

 King Ahaseures/ Xerxes is a hot mess, but he elevates Esther because of her beauty

 She ends up in a place of privilege, but has to keep her ethnic background on the DL

 Haman is Xerxes’ boy and main investor and he hates the Jews because of his own

insecurities – he gets Ahaseures to agree to a genocide

 Mordechai finds this out and tears off clothes and sends message to Esther  You have

to do something because God will figure it out but you have to decide your role

 She sends a message to everyone join me in fasting for 3 days!!!

Lent Explanation –

 Comes from the English work Lencten meaning “spring season” connected to old

festivals of preparation for spring and particularly agricultural practices of seed planting

as the days became longer.

 There a number of touch stones that anchor the time

o Start with Ash Wed a remembrance of our mortality and connection to the dirt

o 40 day period of fasting (diff counting methods) –Jesus’ also Moses

o Closes w/ Holy Week when Jesus has to go big or go down – he does both.

Lent is about -

1. Focusing Your Attention

2. Hearing From God

3. Preparing for Bold Action

Lent is about Focusing Your Attention on God – That is the point of fasting!!!! It is not about

being seen or even doing something with other people to feel collective strength. That can be a

biproduct of this time but it is not the main point.

Fasting is a time when you really lean into God where you disrupt your daily patterns and

practices to enter a special elevated space of spiritual practice. You give up one thing to pick up

another. Lunchtime for prayer time. Social media scrolling for Biblical study. TV watching for

silent meditation. This is not just about abstaining but creating space. If there is not spiritual

shift then you are not really fasting in a spiritual way.

It could be about just being a better Christian, but if we look at the examples of the kinds of

fasts that the Bible mentions – the fast of Jesus or of Esther – it is bigger than that. They both

lean into fasting because they are not just taking their spiritual life to the next level as an

annual practice – they are about to do something big and they need to go to the next level

spiritually in order to be ready for the next step they are called to take. That is the moment that

we are in! Our country is in a hot mess moment and we as individuals and a congregation are

called to respond. So we need to take our practice to the next level to show up in a more God-

led and God-infused way. We need to be embodying God at a cellular level!

Points for Reflection – Focusing Your Attention

What we willing to risk = Position, Provision and Protection

What we are must embrace to step out = God’s presence, God’s Precepts and God’s Plan

Esther decided to go big or go down. She was taking on the salvation of her people not just

being more pious. When you are going up against tough odds you really need to get ready. If

you truly reflect on the life of Jesus then bold action is the only appropriate response.

This is not just a sermon for you but a sermon for me. I know that God is calling us, and I know

that God is calling me. There are folks that are not in our community now who need to be here

but I am afraid of failure and even more afraid of too much success. I am afraid of us growing

too quickly, I am afraid of public scrutiny, and of getting doxed. I am simultaneously

heartbroken by what is going on in this country and I know that each of you is called to greater

things and I want that for you and our world. I need my love for you, for our planet and for

humanity to be bigger than all my fears.

Reflections Questions

1. Are you ready to go big or are you trying to live a physically and spiritually comfortable

life? How can you prepare yourself to release position, provision and protection?

2. What are the things that are distracting you from your purpose, causing you to put

other things before God or keeping you in your comfort zone? How are you using your

fasting practice to allow your thirst for God’s plan to loom larger in your life?

3. What area of action is God nudging you toward? Greater ministry? Changes at work?

Leaning into some focused healing work? Social justice work? Where do you feel the

Spirit nudging you and us?