The snow storm ended up canceling Palm Sunday services. As the prayer coordinator for the Harvest crusade I had sent a letter asking the pastors of the 400 plus churches in the area to call their church to 40 days of fasting and prayer. The timing was perfect since Palm Sunday fell 40 days prior to the Greg Laurie, Harvest Crusade. On day 40 we had already scheduled our final monthly prayer time at the First Assembly of God church next door. You will have many opportunities during the next 40 days to go deeper in your prayer time as you ask the Father to empower you and our church. The members of the National Day of Prayer team and Harvest Crusade prayer team have joined together for a 24 hour prayer vigil which will start on the National Day of Prayer May 7th at 6:30pm and run through the next evening 6:30pm. The prayer bookmarks you have been given is a great way to engage in prayer during the 40 days. We have built in prayer time around the alter every Sunday leading up to the Crusade. Now I want to add another dimension to expand your walk with God. Over the next 40 days I would ask that you consider fasting along with your prayer time. What follows is some of the notes I would have shared with you on Sunday if we could have had church services.
Many people do not realize what a fast is or how to go about participating in a fast. So look over what I have to say and above all follow what the Word says about it.
What I hope to do by calling for a time of fasting and prayer is to deepen the experience of joy and intimacy you will have when this kind of activity happens in your walk. When Adam first was separated from the presence of God, the Bible does not mention that Adam prayed to God any longer. Of course praying to God is talking with God. It is not until we read that Enosh was born to Seth that “men began to call upon the name of the Lord” (Gen. 4:26). From that time onward we see people calling on God to help them in life’s situations.
In the Old Testament, Abraham called upon the name of the Lord (Gen. 12:8). Elijah called upon the name of the Lord when he faced the false prophets of Baal, (1 Kings 18:24). Psalms 145:18 states that “ The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth”. Isaiah 55:6 tells us to “Call upon Him while He is near”.
In the New Testament we see the shift to calling on Jesus Christ, for He is God in the flesh. In 1Corinthians 1:2 Paul speaks about all “who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”. Peter states that “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Acts 2:21). All throughout the Bible, we see great men and women of faith calling on the Lord. Simply put, they prayed to God.
Not only do people of Christian faith pray, but it seems that most people regardless of their background will pray. In viewing one of the impact videos where people off the street were asked about prayer, most stated they prayed. Many did not acknowledge Christ as the one and only true God, however they stated they did pray to something. T. W. Hunt stated that “Prayer is as old as man, permeates all of history, and is common to all people”.
I am asking you to make sure that you spend quality time in prayer to Christ the next 40 days. The emphasis of prayer we have asked the church to participate in is called intercessory prayer. Jesus led us in this type of prayer when in the garden he prayed for all to believe in Him as savior (John 17:20). He intercedes for us now in heaven according to Heb. 7:25, and 9:24. I am asking you to intercede for the lost in our community. I am asking you to pray longer, harder, and with more depth than ever before over the next 40 days. To aid you in the deeper prayer life I am asking you to fast along with your prayer.
Allow me to give you some guidelines on fasting before you think this is not for you. First lets define fasting. Simply put, fasting is the voluntary withdrawing from food and/or drink, or other fleshly appetite, for a specified period of time. This is done so that the mind will not be cumbered with earthly matters. The fast is mentioned in both Old and New Testaments. The Hebrew word is ‘sum’ to cover, and ‘mesteuo’ to abstain. The expression used in the law is ‘afflicting the soul’ or ‘deny yourself’ (Lev. 16:29-30 and 23:27). In fact this was a requirement for the Israelites with harsh penalties if they did not follow the law. (lev. 23:29-30). When the fast was for one day they abstained from every kind of food from evening to evening. After the Jewish nation had been taken captive, there were several fast that began to be observed. In Jesus’ time the Pharisees fasted regularly on the second and fifth day of every week because their tradition told that Moses went up onto the mountain to receive the second set of tablets on a Thursday and came down on a Monday (Matt. 9:14; Lk. 18:12). In this they took pride and were found to be hypocritical by Jesus (Matt. 6:16). As the early church evolved the Christians appointed Wednesday and Friday as days of fasting. Friday was especially important and they would eat no flesh in order to commemorate the passion and crucifixion of Christ. The Biblical bases for this practice is found in Matt. 9:15 “the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast”. I always wondered why Catholics only ate fish on Friday when I was growing up. So we see that fasting has always been with us and even required by God in some effect. Jesus stated when you fast, not if you fast. In the 6th and 8th centuries fasting was required. Now the protestant church has no obligation attached to fasting and so we are not requiring you to fast over the next 40 days. I am asking you to consider it as a matter of the heart.
Let me offer some of the ways you may choose to fast during the next 40 days. There are three basic types of fasting mentioned in the Bible.
A. The normal fast. This is a fast with no food only liquids like water and some have to have juice due to health considerations. It can last for a day, like the fast for the Day of Atonement. There can be a 3 day fast like the one the apostle Paul held after he was saved ( Acts 9:9). This can be of any length and is up to your judgment and health situation. (use common sense)
B. There is the partial fast where you eat only certain kinds of food. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego all kept this kind of fast (Daniel 1:8-15). I would also mention one type of fast that Priscilla and I have agreed on when we are seeking the Lord in this way. It is found in 1 Corinthians 7:5 and it tells you to devote yourselves to prayer during this type of fast.
C. The absolute fast is one like Jesus participated in for 40 days (Lk. 4:2). Moses was with the Lord 40 days without food (Ex. 34:28). This is a very serious fast and should be done only under a doctor’s care or close supervision.
The bottom line is that you must be in agreement with your Lord and in the one case, with your spouse. It is a time for prayer to a degree that goes beyond what you may normally do. The fast is there so that you are in total focus on the things of God. I hope you experience joy, release, and power in Christ over the next 40 days. Pastor Steve