Fasting Message Part 2
Messages:
Continue to pray for P.M. and Danny.
Wednesday Night Bible Study: 7:00 PM
Youth Group: 6:30 PM
Continue to pray for P.M. and Danny, their healing, and procedure.
Family Research Council Report:
The Family Research Council identified 415 hostile incidents in 2024, affecting 383 churches. These incidents ranged from vandalism and arson to gun-related threats, bomb hoaxes, and physical assaults.
Prayer & Fasting Reflection
Last week, we discussed the benefits of fasting, meditation, and prayer. These practices humble us before God and draw us closer to Him—into communion and fellowship with the Father and the Son. Fasting, prayer, and meditation grow us spiritually, help us combat spiritual warfare, break the bonds of sin, and sanctify us, preparing us for a life of holiness.
I will finish last week’s message and go straight into this week’s: breaking spiritual bonds, standing against sin, and sitting at the feet of God before His throne.
Scripture Readings
[Matthew 27:49-51 NKJV] 49 The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.” 50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. 51 Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split.
[Romans 8:11-17 NKJV] 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you… 17 and if children, then heirs–heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
[Mark 1:35 NKJV] 35 Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.
[Mark 6:46 NKJV] 46 And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.
[Luke 6:12 NKJV] 12 Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray and continued all night in prayer to God.
[John 4:34 NKJV] 34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.”
[Hebrews 5:6-10 NKJV] 6 As He also says in another place: “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek”… 10 called by God as High Priest “according to the order of Melchizedek.”
How to Fast, Pray, and Meditate
We are using A Simple Guide to Biblical Fasting by John Tushabe and excerpts from A Guide to Christian Fasting by David Mathis. If you would like these resources, please sign up on the email sheet.
6 Practical Steps
- Start Small: Begin with one meal a week, then progress to two meals, a full day, and eventually a two-day juice fast.
- Plan What to Do Instead of Eating: Replace meal times with prayer, scripture reading, or acts of service.
- Consider How It Affects Others: Fasting should increase our love and care for those around us.
- Try Different Kinds of Fasting: Consider individual, communal, or partial fasts (like Daniel 10:3).
- Fast from Something Other than Food: Social media, TV, or other distractions may be set aside to seek God more fully.
- Focus on God: When hunger strikes, turn your mind and heart toward God, not food.
Safety Precautions
Do not fast without medical guidance if you are underweight, have eating disorders, are pregnant/nursing, or have chronic conditions affecting the heart, liver, kidneys, or blood sugar.
Submitting to the Word of God
[John 14:15-16 NKJV] 15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—
[John 14:21 NKJV] 21 “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
[John 14:23-24 NKJV] 23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.”
Call to Action
Seek the Holy Spirit before fasting, praying, and meditating. Confess sins, ask for understanding, and seek strength for the journey.
40-Day Fast:
Starting 18 AUG 2025 and ending 26 SEPT 2025. On Sunday, 28 SEPT 2025, we will share testimonies of breakthrough and what God has done during this time of fasting.
Can’t Make it to Church? Join us at 10:30 Live on Youtube