Fasting

Isaiah 58:6-7 (The Message)
6-9"This is the kind of fast day I'm after: to break the chains of injustice, get rid of exploitation in the workplace, free the oppressed, cancel debts.What I'm interested in seeing you do is: sharing your food with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families.Do this and the lights will turn on, and your lives will turn around at once.Your righteousness will pave your way. The God of glory will secure your passage.Then when you pray, God will answer. You'll call out for help and I'll say, 'Here I am.'









I know this can be a wierd subject, but had somebody not talked about it with me I would not know about it.....the subject matter is FASTING!!!







So, I was always under the impression that it was something that the Old Testament people did. I mean, we have grace, and the Spirit living right inside of us, why in the world would we need to go without food to get God's attention. He lives right inside of us....so why not just talk to him....with a full belly and move on. Doesn't He hear us.....every word we say every thought we have....why not think these thoughts and pray these prayers in the car with a diet coke handy?? I wasn't meaning any disrespect by it, I just didn't get it......







And then in the last year, I have been drawing nearer to the Lord and I've been wanting a deeper intamacy with Him. So I have done some things and tried some things...and one of those things is....FASTING!



No this is not for everyone, we are all in different places and each have a personal and very individual relationship with the Lord. This is also NOT for those with eating disorders.







The thing with it is......it's not really just to get God's attention, He is already quite focused on the tasks at hand, it is to get our attention. Don't get me wrong God does love when we do anything to draw nearer to Him, He has done amazing things when people have fasted and prayed and cried out to Him. He did it in Bible times, New and Old Testament and He does it TODAY! He may not always answer us the way we want, but He does love when we reach out to Him.







I heard it said, you are basically saying, " I want Jesus MORE than I want food." We think that is a no brainer....but wait until you go a meal or 2 without....you have to constantly remind yourself what in the world you are doing and why.











I've had some big "ole prayers lately that were very urgent in my world, and maybe fasting and praying didn't bring an immediate answer, but it sure got me down to business with God and if that is what it takes for this weakling then I ought to consider doing it a lot more.





Last night there was a prayer meeting at our church here in Powell Butte, and a few of us fasted yesterday to just get in tuned and ahead of time for the meeting. It was kinda funny, but Charlie and I did this without telling eachother until it was over, we had no plan, and we couldn't talk about it because he was out of cell service up until 1 hour before the meeting, and when we finally talked we compared notes. It was just confirmation. The prayer meeting was sweet and poweful, and it is going to continue every Wednesday night @ 6:30pm.





Funny, how we love to gather with our friends for food and celebrations of all sorts, but not nearly enough for prayer. So, I hope that changes, because there is nothing better than getting together and talking to our Lord with the people we love.



I'm a work in progress and learning as I go here, I have read verses, listened to sermons, read books and blogs on this subject, so I encourage you to do the same, because I am a total rookie and don't want to pretend I know more than I do.



Ezra 8:21-22 (The Message)
21-22 I proclaimed a fast there beside the Ahava Canal, a fast to humble ourselves before our God and pray for wise guidance for our journey—all our people and possessions. I was embarrassed to ask the king for a cavalry bodyguard to protect us from bandits on the road. We had just told the king, "Our God lovingly looks after all those who seek him, but turns away in disgust from those who leave him."







Isaiah 58:6-7 (New Living Translation)
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.