Fasting

What is Fasting? By definition, fasting is to abstain from food or other ‘life’ comforts. The focus of fasting is to strengthen us and aide our desire to know the Father and His will more. We do not fast in an attempt to make God pay attention to us or gain favor -but to enter into His presence. It is not to move His heart but to move our own hearts.

Successful Fasting

From “Seven Basic Steps to Successful Fasting & Prayer” by Bill Bright

1. Set Your Objective

Why are you fasting? Ask the Holy Spirit to clarify his leading and guidance for your fast.

2. Make Your Commitment

Pray about the kind of fast you should undertake: Water only? A Juice or Daniel fast? Will you abstain from something else? And, how long will you fast?

3. Prepare Yourself Spiritually

Prepare your heart: Confess unconfessed sins, seek forgiveness and forgive others. Do not underestimate spiritual resistance to your fast.

4. Prepare Yourself Physically

Consult your physician before starting a fast especially if you have a chronic aliment or take prescription medication. Eat smaller meals of fruits and vegetables running up to your fast.

5. Put Yourself on a Schedule

Set aside time to pray and fast. Use the time you would’ve used to eat for prayer

6. End your Fast Gradually

Begin eating gradually. Do not eat solid foods right away. Sudden changes can have negative and even dangerous consequences.

7. Expect Results

Expect God to move! Fasting is not a spiritual cure-all-it takes time to build your fasting muscles. Desire to go deeper.

** WHY WE ARE FASTING **

We fast to…

1) Enlarge our capacity and increase our hunger for God.
2) Be open to hear His voice
3) Prepare and position our church and leadership for the next level in 2011
4) Renew our connection to God and seek Him for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit over us and our church movement.

MEALTIME DEVOTIONAL VIDEOS

These videos are from a great resource that many churches across the world have been using as they joined together in 21 days of fasting and spiritual renewal through Awakening, check it out at www.awake21.org.

If you’re looking for suggestions – During each mealtime, you can sit down with a notebook and pen and spend 10 – 15 minutes watching a focused teaching from pastors and teachers all over the world. This is a simple way to stay engaged with God at a time of the day that you will be tempted to focus on other things… like food!

For more information on fasting, Pastor Lorne recommends the following books:

• Awakening: A New Approach to Faith, Fasting, and Spiritual Freedom by Stovall Weems
• 7 Basic Steps to Successful Fasting & Prayer by Bill Bright
• Fasting: Opening the door to a deeper, more intimate, more powerful relationship with God by Jentezen Franklin
• Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough: A Guide to Nine Biblical Fasts and The Beginner’s Guide to Fasting by Elmer Towns

And make sure to check out the Awakening daily devotional guides at www.awake21.org.

This is going to be an amazing experience. Thanks for participating with us. Please don’t hesitate to email us at info@c3calgary.ca or call 403 686 0608 if you have any questions.