Good Morning!! Good Afternoon! Good Evening!! Whatever time it is for you - it's still GOOD!! I hope and pray that the Lord is still revealing Himself to you even the more during your time of fasting and praying!!! We serve a wonderful G-d.
Here's something that I hope will encourage you as you continue fasting unto the Lord.
Fasting is a knife that cuts away superficiality, getting to the bone. Effective, because it is able to break up daily patterns upon which you have become so dependent. When those patterns of pleasure are removed, you are left with your own internal resources. If those resources are bankrupt, then during fasting, you will come face to face with a vacuum that only God can fill.
Fasting also applies pressure to the flesh, and, you may be appalled at how much the flesh will squirm. But it is high time that the flesh is removed from the role of God, dethroned and placed under the foot of your will. It is the creativity of a freed will which lifts us above animal instincts and releases us from the cages of empty routine.
Fasting accomplishes two purposes. First, it will reveal how much the flesh has taken control of your emotions. And secondly, it will serve in breaking the flesh’s hold upon the will.
Fasting will invariably bring to the surface deep seated fears which affect thinking and decision-making. It does this by challenging that complex human instinct called self-preservation. This instinct has been created in every living thing on earth, including man. But you are a New Creation in Christ, recreated not to be controlled by instincts. Because of your rebirth, you have been recreated into a creature of a higher and more grand design than that of your former life.
Fasting forces us to face the chaos of addictions, compulsive behaviors, depression and internal pain. It’s like pressing the pause button of life, and quietly observing how crazy and detached we have become to who we are.
Want to get off the conveyer belt of life? Smash those meaningless patterns—the ones you hated in your youth when you had passion, a sparkle for living, when you really believed in something—promising never to get trapped in the horrible mundane in which mom and dad lived as you grew up. Do you want to live a life with meaning, driven by conviction, even willing to take a chance—becoming the best you can before God? Do you want to be empowered by the Master of your destiny? His desire is for you to be decisive, powerful, self-controlled and free.
But first we must come to grips with those hidden, subtle demons of our character: fear, hopelessness, worry, doubt and selfishness. Beat the bushes, flush them out, expose them for what they are and destroy them with the power of the Word.
They don’t die quietly, because their tentacles can reach into your emotions. They taint everything they touch, no matter how pure. Their presence will rise up against you with great force when you try to fast before the Lord.
When you begin to face them, you set yourself up for failure. There is a risk of pain, especially if you are willing to go deep. It takes courage to go down to the bottom. Who knows what you may find? Faces from the past. Forgotten horrors in the root cellar of your soul. But God is there too. There is no part of you which He does not see, no matter how well you hide. And He loves you and longs to see you set free.
During fasting, patterns of living are broken. Fasting can be an oasis of spiritual refreshment in a life that has become a desert of uselessness. A spiritual desert that has been left in the wake of selfish materialism.
We have been warned not to conform to the patterns of this world, but if you are honest, very little of your lifestyle is different from that of your neighbor’s.
Quite frankly, for Christ to become front-and-center in your life, things will have to be sacrificed. And at the start, it is going to hurt.
True, spiritual fasting smashes religion and draws a distinguishable line in the sand. It is a magnifying glass that allows us to examine our unconscious patterns of living. The driving force of where our life is going. That is why Satan has invested so much energy towards controlling the subconscious patterns of mankind. He will be appalled if you attempt a fast because fasting exposes how much he has been able to infiltrate the destiny of your life.
Real Fasting
The Israelites fasted regularly. It was a part of their culture. As with so many things, fasting had become so ingrained in tradition that it had lost its true meaning. When something becomes an empty ritual, it no longer has the power to affect a heart. (Isaiah 58:2)
Their fast seemed noble, they were eager for God to come near. They would lie down, dressed in sackcloth and ashes, wailing and crying. But, as with the modern church, ancient Israel was plagued with religiosity—a disease of convenience. Fasting had become a pretty little package to offer it to God in hope that it would appease Him.
It is tough to pull the wool over God's eyes. We can pull the wool over our own eyes but not God's—He sees the heart.
God does not want our works or pretty little gifts. He wants our hearts, and that is where the Israelites made their mistake! Their fasting was an insult to God's intelligence. Do you really think that you can appease Me by offering your little fasts and expect Me to turn a blind eye to the corruption and rebellion in your heart?
God does not respond to the things which we do, He responds to a change of heart, and it is here where we come to the true purpose of spiritual fasting.
Fasting is a tool to help us change our hearts before God.
Fasting is not something which we are offering up to God, but, instead, it assists in offering ourselves up to God (Rom. 12:1-2).
Going to church, fasting, speaking in tongues, reading the Bible—we offer these things up to God as being pleasing to Him. Yet, these are the tools which assist in giving to God what He truly wants—our hearts. Our passions are the dish that delights the heart of God.
The Guest
Jesus says that the fulfillment of all the Law and Prophets is to love the Lord your God with all your mind, heart and soul.
You will sacrifice much for something you deeply love. Time, money and energy become a means to fulfill your heart’s desire.
Think of fasting as an invitation for Jesus to come and live with you for an appointed period of time. If it helps, set a bed and place-setting at the table. It may sound strange yet useful if only to solidify in your mind the reality of the presence of Jesus. And, be sure that it delights God’s heart when we put any energy towards creatively making Jesus real in our thinking and imagination.
If Jesus came to live with you during your fast, would you act different?
How much time would you spend watching TV? What kind of music would you listen? Would there be books that you would have to hide under the chesterfield? What would you feed Him? What would you do for entertainment? Would you take Him out on the town?
What you listen to, He listens to. What you imagine, He imagines. What you eat, He eats.
Feeling a little trapped? Don’t, because you’re the one who invited Him in when you became a Christian. He wants to commune with you so that He may become the Center of your existence, the Foundation of your house, Healer, Friend, and Lover.
Too close for comfort? Yes, God can make you feel uncomfortable at times, but there’s a purpose. It causes growth and maturity that results in a deeper relationship.
The fullness of God has been set within us, we don't need more of Him; it is just that our lives have become so cluttered with distractions, fears and dependencies on this world that we are unable to sense and experience that fullness. We become spiritually numb, the part of us that is connected to God becomes cold and indifferent. The Holy Spirit grieves and grows silent, creating an emptiness which He uses to draw us back into fellowship. The problem is that we so often fill that emptiness with things.
Don't do that!
Feel empty! Feel the pain! Allow your heart to suffer. Don't be afraid, it will draw you to Jesus.
