Another January 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting is in the books! I pray this fast has been a Pivot Point for you in some way. Have you been encouraged (or maybe challenged?) by Pastor Nicky’s daily Word Fast videos? Maybe some of you have even decided to adopt a regular scheduled Word Fast for yourselves moving forward? It’s not a bad idea!!
I want to take a moment and share some personal reflection on the past 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting. The enemy is always on high alert and responds accordingly when we enter into a fast; for me fasting always brings conflict. I have adopted a routine in a fast, not necessarily out of strict habit but because it this routine provides a productive spiritual fast that works for my schedule. Early on with this fast it started like most other fasts, meaning it felt like all of hell had been unleashed against me and my family. It can be enough to make you want to quit (that is the Enemy’s goal!).
When I am able to dig in, focus, and spend time in prayer and the Word, there begins to be more clarity. Although it hasn’t always been the case, fasting typically brings me clarity. My mind is clearer when I am less focused on a meal, or distracted by a commercial about a meal, and I am intentionally more focused on speaking to God and listening to Him speak to me. It seems like while my communication with others may diminish over the 21 days of Pray and Fasting, my communication with the Holy Spirit increases (that’s the goal!). Clarity is not about black and white answers, or left and right directions necessarily. It has really become more about an overwhelming peace that this fast is 100% about Him. That this time is going to go as the wind of His Spirit leads and I just need to follow without getting too far ahead of myself. Yes, I plan, I prepare, and I dream but first I ABIDE and second I listen. It’s not always easy but it’s always necessary.
Abide has been a key word in my spirit during this fast. I usually pray a lot throughout the day and this fast has helped my prayers become more focused and organized. I have learned more about the value in just listening and sitting at His feet. I don’t need to hurry, I don’t need some sort of pitch into what I think would be a good idea; I just need to sit and abide in His presence. Sitting in silence with just my own thoughts used to be a crippling concept but now it has become a welcomed opportunity to just abide with my Savior. Another word that I have found myself praying during this fast is COMMUNITY. That word applies to our city, as well as, this church. My heart has grown in appreciation and value for both levels of community in new ways that came as a bit of a surprise.
There have been other moments and encounters with His presence throughout this fast but I will include just one more here and that’s STRENGTH. This is pretty vulnerable for me but I struggle with self-confidence sometimes and the Enemy has used that against me in seasons of my life. Not any more though! I have learned to not just embrace my weakness but surrender every detail to Christ and trust that He will work it out for His good. I know I say a lot of this from the pulpit, but whenever I stand up there and share from the Bible or something I believe God gave me, I am only able to share it with all of you after I have wrestled with it. My struggle with self-confidence doesn’t make me inadequate – it means that is an area for His light to enter and illuminate any attempt of darkness to infiltrate with lies. I’m not less than anything because Christ in me is greater than everything.
That is what this fast has meant to me. Yes, it has been hard, but not because I was hungry and wanted to quit. At times it didn’t seem fair (or maybe even worth it) to endure hardship for the sake of a fast. However, it isn’t about whether or not it’s ever worth it. I trust that when I draw near to Him that He is absolutely going to draw near to me. THAT is what fasting does! Fasting creates a conduit that bypasses other distractions of the world and allows me to be focused and see things with clarity. God doesn’t want you or I to fail. He wants our story to include Jesus’ success stories! Fasting shouldn’t just be something we do twice a year, it should be who we are as a church and as a people. We will always do this for as long as I’m breathing. Not so we can follow some church trend, but so we create the spiritual discipline to allow Christ to be glorified in our sacrifice and for His voice to be the loudest voice of our story.