My thoughts on Fasting and Prayer –
Matthew 17:21
For those of you that read our message board, you know that I posted a message about fasting 1-week during the month of May. I recognize that while many of you know about fasting and prayer, there are just as many of you that may not be familiar with it so I want to give you a short teaching on the topic and why it is necessary to fast and pray.
Now understand, there are scholars out there on this topic and you can do a further study to get more information, but I am going to give you an overview. This does not supercede what your house teaches. I pray that this falls in line, but if it does not, what your pastor (who should be hearing from God) teaches comes first.
Fasting and Prayer is the time that you set aside to lay before God and hear from Him. Usually it is on something more specific, you are trying to hear God for something or your church has called a time of fasting or there may be a sickness. When you are fasting, especially for a period of time it is most likely not general, it is very specific. The bible tells us to pray without ceasing. This is good because it gives God the opportunity to talk to you and to share with you about various things that you may be praying about; however, there is another level that just prayer won’t do.
Do you remember when the disciple came to Jesus and asked Him why they could not cast the devil out of the man? (Matthew 17:21) What did Jesus say? “This kind goes not out but by prayer and fasting”. These men were followers of Jesus Christ. They knew Him followed Him, lived with Him daily and they mimicked Him as best as they could, but there was something missing. There was something on the inside of Jesus that the disciples didn’t have and the only way that they were going to get it was by prayer and fasting.
Being in church all the time, you can learn everything there is to “church-dom” and can fool a lot of people but where the rubber meets the road you will fall short every time and the only way that you can overcome that is by spending some time with God.
This thing called dance really is a ministry. What you do in front of the people affects them spiritually one way or another. Your feet are supposed to preach, teach, heal and deliver but if you don’t have something down on the inside, then you have nothing to share. Fasting is the time that you say, all right God, more of you and less of me I am going to turn down my plate, turn off my text/phone, I’m going to stay off the Internet until I get my answer. More of you God and less of me, then you can begin to get a breakthrough and God can begin to do more in you and through you. Then you will begin to see your ministry change and become more effective in other peoples lives.
Fasting and prayer is of God and He desires you to take advantage of it and use it at will for your spiritual growth. Begin to seek God on the issue. Your prayer should always be, God if this is of you I want it. I may not understand but I know that you will reveal it to me. Lets Pray!
Lord, I don’t want to serve you all my life and find out on that day that there was more that I should or could have taken advantage of. Speak to me Lord; speak through me Lord, above all else I want my life to be about you. In Jesus name AMEN!
As always, the very first thing that should be taken care of is your salvation. If you have not received the Lord as your personal savior then you can’t even take advantage of His promises. How can you go to your neighbor’s father and expect him to take care of you and supply all your needs when you are not his?
The word is simple: Romans 10:9-10 says: That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Lets get the preliminaries out of the way. Give Him your life today.
If you said this prayer then you are saved! You are now a new creature, and you have been adopted into the family of God. Welcome sister, welcome brother, it’s a brand new day. Go to the message board and introduce yourself to your new family.
~God Bless~
