Fasting and Prayer go hand and hand with The Good News

 

Fasting and prayer go hand and hand with The Good News.

Acts 13:2-3, NKJV, says,

2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted,

The Holy Spirit said,

“Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul

for the work to which I have called them.”

3 Then, having fasted and prayed,

and laid hands on them, they sent them away.

Fasting and Prayer is for,

Strength, exhortation, faith through tribulations,

appointing leaders and dedicating to the Lord.

Acts 14:21-23, NKJV, says,

21 And when they had preached the Gospel to that city

and made many disciples,

they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch,

22 strengthening the souls of the disciples,

exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying,

“We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.”

23 So when they had appointed elders in every church,

and prayed with fasting,

they commended them to The Lord in whom they had believed.

Fasting and Prayer is also for protection,

your children, having a safe trip,

and

Can be over your personal belongings.

Especially when your focus and concern

is God's great name and not your own.

Ezra 8:21-23, NKJV, says,

21 Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava,

that we might humble ourselves before our God,

to seek from Him the right way for us

and our little ones and all our possessions.

22 For I was ashamed to request of the king

an escort of soldiers and horsemen

to help us against the enemy on the road,

because we had spoken to the king, saying,

“The hand of our God is upon all those for good who seek Him,

but His power and His wrath are against all those who forsake Him.”

23 So we fasted and entreated our God for this,

and He answered our prayer.

So we see prayers get answered.

But, we also see prayers go unanswered.

Psalms 35:13, NKJV, says,

13 But as for me, when they were sick,

My clothing was sackcloth;

I humbled myself with fasting;

And my prayer would return to my own heart.

So remember, we never fast and pray

only to get God to do something.

What is the difference between true and false fasting,

worship, and prayer?

Well, Isaiah 58:2-11, NLT, says this,

2 Yet they act so pious!

They come to the Temple every day

and seem delighted to learn all about Me.

They act like a righteous nation

that would never abandon the laws of its God.

They ask Me to take action on their behalf,

pretending they want to be near Me.

3 ‘We have fasted before you!’ they say.

‘Why aren’t you impressed?

We have been very hard on ourselves,

and you don’t even notice it!

“I will tell you why!” I respond.

“It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves.

Even while you fast,

you keep oppressing your workers.

4 What good is fasting

when you keep on fighting and quarreling?

This kind of fasting will never get you anywhere with me.

5 You humble yourselves by going through the motions of penance,

bowing your heads like reeds bending in the wind.

You dress in burlap and cover yourselves with ashes.

Is this what you call fasting?

Do you really think this will please the Lord?

6 “No, this is the kind of fasting I want:

Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;

Lighten the burden of those who work for you.

Let the oppressed go free,

and remove the chains that bind people.

7 Share your food with the hungry,

and give shelter to the homeless.

Give clothes to those who need them,

and do not hide from relatives who need your help.

8 “Then your Salvation will come like the dawn,

and your wounds will quickly heal.

Your godliness will lead you forward,

and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.

9 Then when you call, the Lord will answer.

‘Yes, I am here,’ He will quickly reply.

“Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.

Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!

10 Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble.

Then your light will shine out from the darkness,

and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.

11 The Lord will guide you continually,

giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength.

You will be like a well-watered garden,

like an ever-flowing spring.

Always remember to keep your motives pure and true

and

Be about The glory of God

and

His great name.

Take note of the similarities between Isaiah 58,

and

1 Corinthians 13.

Because when it comes to fasting and prayer,

Sharing The Good News,

Our relationship with God,

Or

Anything we do in life for that matter.

We must have pure motives and love with no agenda.

At the end of the day we know Jesus set the example

and humbled Himself as we find in Philippians 2:8-11, NKJV,

where The Word of God says,

8 And being found in appearance as a man,

He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death,

even the death of the cross.

9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him

and given Him the name which is above every name,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,

11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

And,

We know we're called to humble ourselves,

Pick up our cross,

and

Follow Jesus.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20, NKJV, says,

19 Or do you not know that your body

is the temple of The Holy Spirit who is in you,

whom you have from God, and you are not your own?

20 For you were bought at a price;

therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit,

which are God’s.

There's so many great examples

and

lessons to be learned from fasting and prayer.

Here's a few examples:

If we're going to teach others how to pray.

Then shouldn't we have a strong prayer life,

Built out of our time spent with God

and therefore know how to pray?

What would you say to someone if they asked you how to pray?

The fact is when we choose to fast and pray

We're setting everything else aside

in order to spend time

and

strengthen our relationship with God

and

As a result we gain great insight into prayer on a deeper level.

Fasting and Prayer shouldn't be

this illusive thing we try to avoid at all cost.

Think about it.

It's supposed to be relational.

You could choose to fast and pray for an extended time,

once a year,

or

You could choose to fast and pray

one day a month.

Ultimately it's up to you.

Remember more than anything choosing to fast and pray

Should be about getting alone

and

spending one on one time with your Heavenly Father.

The Word of God teaches us

That we're called to fast and pray

by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

for a specific reason.

But,

We should also remember

There may be a specific season

when we're called to fast and pray

for a specific reason

or

Maybe even a reason

we don't specifically know or understand yet.

We should keep this in mind when thinking about fasting and prayer.

We should think about fasting and prayer like giving.

It should always be out of the abundance of the heart

and

never grudgingly or out of necessity.

Now, so that you know fasting and prayer

can be a normal part of life, for a follower of Jesus Christ.

I would like to share something personal and hopefully encouraging with you.

Even before ink ever hit a piece of paper

To start writing this manual for sharing The Good News

and

Living a life of freedom in Christ.

I began to fast and pray.

Even before starting this chapter about fasting and prayer.

I thought to myself.

What better way is there to begin writing

about fasting and prayer

Than to be fasting and praying

while writing about fasting and praying.

Why am I telling you this?

First, I want you to know it can be a normal part of life

for those who follow Jesus Christ.

Secondly, I want you to know if you have any questions.

You will be asking someone who lives the words inscribed in this manual.

Now, in no way am I saying that I have all the answers

and I echo Paul when he said,

Not that I have already attained,

or am already perfected; but I press on,

that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.

So what I am saying is this.

Please feel free to ask questions

Because the words contained on these pages

have not just been spoken

Or

Merely wrote down void of substance

with a lack of applicable reason.

They're lived.

Hopefully this brings you comfort moving forward.

Ultimately my prayer is your relationship and freedom in Christ

Will lead others into freedom and a relationship with Christ.

We must understand that we can't give away something we don't have.

I would like to share with you another example 

of how fasting, prayer,

and

The Good News go hand and hand.

While it's well noted

that you may have already heard the information

that is about to be shared

through Scripture, YouTube, or even a Sermon.

For me personally..

The information I'm about to share

came from a time of fasting and prayer with God

and

Sharing The Good News.

Through fasting and prayer my eyes were opened

to see these Truths found in Matthew 4:1-6, NKJV,

where The Word of God says,

Then Jesus was led up by The Spirit

into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights,

afterward He was hungry.

3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said,

“If You are The Son of God,

command that these stones become bread.”

4 But He answered and said,

“It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone,

but by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”

5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city,

set Him on the pinnacle of the temple,

6 and said to Him,

“If You are The Son of God,

throw Yourself down.

For it is written:

‘He shall give His angels charge over You,’

and, ‘In their hands they shall bear You up,

Lest You dash Your foot against a stone.’ ”

Do you see it?

The devil waits until we're weak

or he thinks our guard is down.

Then he tries to do what he does best.

Kill, Steal, and Destroy..

The devil knew Jesus was hungry

after fasting for forty days and forty nights

and

The first thing he did

was attack the image, value,

and

identity of Jesus Christ.

He questioned who Jesus was by saying,

“ If You are the Son of God,

see the devil doesn't want us to know who we are in Christ.

The fact is even when we do know who we are in Christ

the enemy still attempts to cause doubt.

Think about it.

He tried to tempt Jesus Christ Himself.

What makes you think he wouldn't tempt

those who follow Jesus Christ.

Please pay attention as we're now arriving to the most important part.

After the devil questions the image, value, and identity of Jesus Christ.

He says, command these stones become bread.

Why is this important?

Well, I want to share something with you that you may not know.

One of the first things someone needs to know and learn about fasting is this.

Anytime you fast long enough

for your digestive system to shut down.

Usually somewhere within three to five days

depending on the person.

The worst food you could possibly eat

to break a fast with is bread.

Now, you may be OK within a certain time frame.

But, after two weeks there would be know doubt

that this would become very crucial.

Especially after a forty day fast!

There's many reasons

why you never want to break a fast with bread!

First, after many days of fasting the stomach shrinks tremendously.

Secondly, when bread is combined with water it swells.

Think about it.

The devil attacks the image, value,

and

identity of Jesus Christ.

In hopes that Jesus would be prideful just like him.

Turn those stones into a couple of wonderful smelling loaves of bread.

Knowing full well He is hungry.

In hopes that Jesus would be gluttonous,

over eat and unknowingly die.

But, thankfully Jesus knows who He is

and

this should be a lesson to us to know who we are in Him.

Next, the devil questions the image, value,

and identity of Jesus Christ once again.

Since Jesus used The Word

in response to the devils first attack.

The devil tries to use The Word against Jesus in the second attack.

And says, “ If You are the Son of God,

throw Yourself down.

For it is written: ' He shall give His angels charge over You,

'and, ' In their hands they shall bear You up,

lest you dash your foot against a stone.' ”

Again the devil is hoping

that Jesus will be prideful just like him.

Basically,

the devil wanted Jesus

to commit suicide by pride

by jumping of the pinnacle of the Temple

and

killing Himself.

This is another advanced P.O.R. Building Block

In regards to sharing The Good News

with those who have suicidal thoughts or actions.

Including those who have had suicidal thoughts or actions.

Many times I have been asked this question.

If there's a God who loves me,

Then why would He allow me to have suicidal thoughts

or attempt suicide?

When your asked a question like this

You could explain that even Jesus Christ Himself

Was tempted by the devil to commit suicide by pride.

Obviously, there is a vast difference

between someone trying to purposely end there life

and

Someone who places themselves

in a situation where if God doesn't come through they'll die.

But, the point still stands.

Jesus had the same free will we all have

and

He could've easily chosen to jump to His death.

When we understand that God allowed Jesus

to be tempted by the devil to kill Himself.

Then we can see things from a different perspective.

Ask yourself this next question.

If God would allow Jesus Christ to be tempted

Then why should we think we're above being tempted

When it's Jesus Christ who lives in us?

Think about it.

Jesus was physically weak and hungry

from fasting and prayer when He was tempted.

Then to top it off.

He had just finished pressing in

and

Preparing to step out

and

change the world as we know it.

By spending time in fasting and prayer

with His Heavenly Father for forty days and forty nights.

Soon Jesus would walk on water,

open blind eyes, heal the lame,

and

Raise the dead

all for the Glory of God and His Great Name.

Then right before He begins

the enemy shows up to do what he does best!

Have you ever dealt with this type of situation?

You know,

where the more you pray,

serve, praise, worship, and step out for God.

The more it seems that things keeps happening to you.

This is exactly why it's so important

to have a greater understanding of free will

and

How the self gets in the way.

When we see things from this perspective

It's much easier to rise above the problems

that so many become identified with.

Especially when we know.

This is what the devil does.

The Word of God says the devil comes to kill, steal, and destroy.

But,

We also know that Jesus came

to give life and life more abundantly.

Because He is The Truth,

The Life, and The Way.

Think about it.

Why would God send His Son to die on the cross

so we could live,

Only to turn around and kill us?

See this is why we must understand

that if something falls in the kill, steal, destroy, category.

Then it belongs in the devils category.

And,

When something falls in the

life and life more abundantly category.

Then the glory belongs to Jesus

because He is The Truth, The Life, and The Way.

I understand we could get technical here.

But, the above mentioned is a simple way

to generally and quickly understand the situation at hand.

Jesus understands His image, value, purpose, and identity.

Because this is exactly what He came to restore

in all those who receive Him.

And,

Because of this.

He never questions who He is

Or

The love of His Father.

And,

This is why it's so important

for us to know who we are in Christ.

The fact is,

Every 4 seconds someone commits suicide

and

If they had a revelation of just there value alone.

This would never happen.

Even as you read this page

10 to 15 people will take there own lives.

Maybe there lives wouldn't have ended so abruptly.

If only someone would have been bold enough

to love them and share The Truth with them.

The Word of God says my people

are destroyed for a lack of knowledge.

So let's get the knowledge

from personally knowing God

and 

stop being destroyed.

The enemy uses our free will, emotions,

and

Lack of relational knowledge

to constantly attack our image, value, purpose, and identity.

Why?

Because the more we walk in love

and

Go about doing good.

The more we look like our Heavenly Father

and

The more the enemy has to suffer,

by being surrounded by the image of God.

Basically when we walk in Truth the enemy suffers instead of us!

By now it's probably very clear how fasting and prayer

revels Truths that open doors for sharing The Good News.

It should also be clear that fasting and prayer

strengthens our supernatural relationship with God

and as a result our natural encounters with the world

become more dynamic, effective, and significant

for The Eternal Kingdom of God.

You could use the priceless price P.O.R. Building Block here

Or

Simply move forward

explaining it's time for the Children of God to rise up

and

Know who we are in Christ Jesus.

Once you have done this.

You can proceed with your P.O.R.

to see if they would like to receive Jesus

Or

Maybe rededicate themselves back to The Lord.

Maybe they just needed someone to talk or pray with them

To strengthen there faith.

Maybe it's time for them to get plugged in

and

They just needed a little encouragement

To finally take there next steps with God.

Whatever it is!

That's why you're there..