Ok, I'll Do It!!

I love when the Lord brings things to my mind because He's wanting to communicate with me. Have you ever had this happen? He shows you things through the Word repeatedly. It's revealed to you again through the radio or your pastor's teachings? I think it's pretty cool until....it's something I'm not that excited to "get on board" with. For me it's been FASTING.

Here's the deal. It isn't like He's been showing me this for few weeks. Most of 2009 was spent poking and prodding me on this subject. Let's face it though...I like to eat. I don't want to fast. Finally in December--the last month of the year--I relented and said, "Ok Lord. I hear you loud and clear." It took me realizing that if He is repeatedly leading me to this there must be a PURPOSE. Perhaps He has great things He wants to teach me through fasting. Maybe it's just a test of my obedience. I don't know the reason, but I decided to begin reading and studying about it.

So I bought the book Fasting by Jentezen Franklin to read along with my Bible.


I found this book wonderfully helpful in explaining the numerous examples of fasting in the Bible. Why we should fast. When we should fast. I don't want to get into a book review here, but I do feel I need to say that I think this book is a little "health and wealth" in it's delivery. Many of the testimonies given are examples of miraculous healings and abundant financial provision attributed to fasting. Now I'm not saying that God doesn't or can't work that way, but it can be bit off-putting if that style of preaching bothers you or if you are a new Christian and might think this is telling you that you can fast to guarantee healing or prosperity. This book helped ME understand what the Lord was calling me to do. That's all I'm sayin'.

After much prayer and submission to the Lord's leading, I have decided to fast. I am going to allow myself liquids, but no food. I don't want to go into any more specifics about it right now as the Bible tells us to fast "in secret". We aren't to advertise it or walk around looking sad and hungry to draw attention to ourselves. I even hesitated writing this post wondering if this was to much attention. The more I thought about it though, I felt compelled to share it because I don't believe fasting is talked about enough. One scripture that the book revealed to me was in Matthew 6. Jesus is teaching about when you pray...He then goes on the preach about when you fast....fasting is biblical. Jesus taught about it. I urge you today to pray about whether fasting is something God is calling you to learn more about and perhaps even do.