Ezra 8

“Then, there at the Ahava River, I proclaimed a fast; so that we could humble ourselves before our God and ask a safe journey of Him for ourselves, our little ones and all our possessions. For I would have been ashamed to ask the king for a detachment of soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies along the road, since we had said to the king, ‘The hand of our God is on all who seek Him, for good; but His power and fury is against all who abandon Him.’ So we fasted and petitioned our God for this, and He answered our prayer.” Ezra 8:21-23 (CJB)

Years ago, the Southern Baptists decided to hold their national convention in Las Vegas. I know it’s ironic. When the Las Vegas mayor showed up on the first day of the convention to welcome the pastors, the SBC president asked if there was an area of need in the community that the Baptists could pray for. The mayor said, “Well, we’re in the middle of the desert, and we could sure use some rain.” So, the pastors prayed for rain. The next morning, the keynote speaker arrived early, placed an umbrella on the pulpit, and asked, “How many of you brought one of these this morning?” The crowd nervously laughed because nobody had brought an umbrella. Then, the speaker went on to say, “We need to learn to pray, believing that God is listening. Otherwise, our testimony about God is ineffective.” Perhaps they should have read Ezra 8.

Verses 15-31 record the results of Ezra’s three-day stocktaking at the canal and also give us insight into the character of this remarkable man of God. Ezra displayed five traits that equipped him to be God’s “man of the hour”: Wisdom, Piety, Faith, Management skills, and Gratitude.

Today’s passage focuses on his Piety and Faith. Ezra “proclaimed a fast” as an acknowledgment of his sinfulness and an expression of his earnest desire to obtain divine guidance and the protection that comes with following Him rightly. Ezra asked God to be the guardian of the people. His mention of the “children” was a tender-hearted plea to the compassionate heart of the loving Heavenly Father. As a parent, I am always asking for God’s spiritual and physical protection of my children. Verse 23 says he “fasted and petitioned” the Lord. The idea of “petitioning” indicates more than a simple prayer. It was more like pleading with God. How did God respond? “He answered our prayer.” How slow we are to pray when God is willing to answer our supplications!

Concerning Ezra’s faith, he used strong terms to tell King Artaxerxes that the Lord was a mighty God who would indeed protect those who trusted and obeyed Him. With the journey imminent, Ezra began to realize the serious hazards he would face. To ask for assistance would have lessened the king’s esteem of Israel’s God, so Ezra put His faith where his mouth was, so to speak. How easy it is to proclaim the Lord’s greatness and sing of His might, but when trials test our faithful proclamations, how often do we seek shelter in the World? Like Ezra, we must READ God’s Word, BELIEVE it, LIVE it, and PROCLAIM it.