Recently God's revealed to Vanessa and I something that we feel have been overlooked within the Church today. It's not a 'fun' topic, and it's not something that gets talked about often, but it should be talked about nonetheless. This topic is fasting.
Remember that Jesus said "when" you fast. Jesus said "when" you pray. When, and not if! Christians today have come to realize the importance of prayer, and that's awesome...but what about the importance of fasting?
“And now about fasting. When you fast, declining your food for a spiritual purpose, don’t do it publicly, as the hypocrites do, who try to look wan and disheveled so people will feel sorry for them. Truly, that is the only reward they will ever get. But when you fast, put on festive clothing, so that no one will suspect you are hungry, except your Father who knows every secret. And he will reward you." Matthew 6:16-18 TLB
Fasting eliminates the distractions caused by over-indulging in food. Fasting causes hunger, and that leads to desperation. Fasting causes desperation, and desperation leads us to seek God. And a hunger for God leads us to rewards from the Father!
Fasting is something we do for our own good! Fasting feeds the spirit, not the flesh. It feeds the Spirit of God within us, not our own flesh. Fasting gives the Holy Spirit free reign.
When we fast and pray, revelation starts to flow. We can see and hear God more clearly. We can feel His heart without normal distractions! It becomes our food to do the will of the Father. And when we do the will of the Father, He gives us our daily bread and we become satisfied by Him.
FASTING BRINGS BREAKTHROUGH
Right now, there are barriers between us and God's will. There are blockages, delays, and obstacles opposing what God wants to do. There are things hindering us from being blessed, and there are things hindering us from overcoming. There are problems in our life that don't seem likely to ever go away.
Remember, there are some problems that only go away with prayer and fasting. When desperation is mixed with faith--when fasting is mixed with prayer--breakthrough happens! When we draw near to God, we can ask for anything in His name. And when we ask, He allows us to receive for our problems the right solution. Fasting removes the blockages.
FASTING BRINGS UNDERSTANDING
Right now, there are things we don't understand. There are situations that we just can't figure out. But we need to remember that Jesus lifted off the veil. Jesus paid for our spiritual discernment, and He paid in full for our wisdom and understanding.
Now, God does not promise us all knowledge. But if something impacts us, it's within our area of influence, and it's within our inheritance to understand. It's within His power to cause us to know.
Fasting allows us to live in a place where we experience wisdom. We can validate by the Holy Spirit that Jesus really did tear the veil! We can validate by our walk in the Spirit that Jesus really does give the spirit of prophecy. We can receive God's perspective on things if we are spiritually hungry enough to attain to it.
There's a time for everything, and for you, it may not be time to fast. But I believe this is a word in season, and I believe that fasting, combined with prayer, is something that the Church is missing right now. Imagine what would happen if we all fasted and prayed and became closer to God! Fasting may be hard, but it's worth the rewards. And I believe we're missing out.
Remember that Jesus said "when" you fast. Jesus said "when" you pray. When, and not if! Christians today have come to realize the importance of prayer, and that's awesome...but what about the importance of fasting?
“And now about fasting. When you fast, declining your food for a spiritual purpose, don’t do it publicly, as the hypocrites do, who try to look wan and disheveled so people will feel sorry for them. Truly, that is the only reward they will ever get. But when you fast, put on festive clothing, so that no one will suspect you are hungry, except your Father who knows every secret. And he will reward you." Matthew 6:16-18 TLB
Fasting eliminates the distractions caused by over-indulging in food. Fasting causes hunger, and that leads to desperation. Fasting causes desperation, and desperation leads us to seek God. And a hunger for God leads us to rewards from the Father!
Fasting is something we do for our own good! Fasting feeds the spirit, not the flesh. It feeds the Spirit of God within us, not our own flesh. Fasting gives the Holy Spirit free reign.
When we fast and pray, revelation starts to flow. We can see and hear God more clearly. We can feel His heart without normal distractions! It becomes our food to do the will of the Father. And when we do the will of the Father, He gives us our daily bread and we become satisfied by Him.
FASTING BRINGS BREAKTHROUGH
Right now, there are barriers between us and God's will. There are blockages, delays, and obstacles opposing what God wants to do. There are things hindering us from being blessed, and there are things hindering us from overcoming. There are problems in our life that don't seem likely to ever go away.
Remember, there are some problems that only go away with prayer and fasting. When desperation is mixed with faith--when fasting is mixed with prayer--breakthrough happens! When we draw near to God, we can ask for anything in His name. And when we ask, He allows us to receive for our problems the right solution. Fasting removes the blockages.
FASTING BRINGS UNDERSTANDING
Right now, there are things we don't understand. There are situations that we just can't figure out. But we need to remember that Jesus lifted off the veil. Jesus paid for our spiritual discernment, and He paid in full for our wisdom and understanding.
Now, God does not promise us all knowledge. But if something impacts us, it's within our area of influence, and it's within our inheritance to understand. It's within His power to cause us to know.
Fasting allows us to live in a place where we experience wisdom. We can validate by the Holy Spirit that Jesus really did tear the veil! We can validate by our walk in the Spirit that Jesus really does give the spirit of prophecy. We can receive God's perspective on things if we are spiritually hungry enough to attain to it.
There's a time for everything, and for you, it may not be time to fast. But I believe this is a word in season, and I believe that fasting, combined with prayer, is something that the Church is missing right now. Imagine what would happen if we all fasted and prayed and became closer to God! Fasting may be hard, but it's worth the rewards. And I believe we're missing out.
No comments:
Post a Comment