What are the schedule and themes for this time of fasting? 5. 5. ... It's crazy to think we've been in the building a ye
CONTENTS A Personal word from Pastor Scott 2 1. Why Fast? 4 2. Why invite the church to fast? 4 3. What if I don’t feel called to join in this fast? 4
4. What are the schedule and themes for this time of fasting? 5 5. What type of fasts are there? 6 6. What if I have a medical problem? 7 7. Can I fast for more than one meal or hour a week? 6 8. What about my children? 7 9. What are the benefits of fasting? 7 10. How can I prepare myself for the fast? 7 11. What should I do during the fast? 8 12. How should I end the fast? 9 APPENDIX Resources on Fasting 9 Important Passages on Fasting 10
INTRO Hey Freshwater! It’s crazy to think we’ve been in the building a year and what a year it’s been! All through the fall and the beginning of 2017 we’ve been seeing momentum building across all of our ministries. We’ve also grown around 20% in our average attendance since we moved in and hit 961 this past Sunday for Easter! Our Community Groups have really taken off. Classes have grown in the kids ministry and we’re actually talking about sub-dividing even more ages of kids to handle the growth. There is a hunger for God’s word in our adult ministry. The Youth Ministry has seen a surge of growth in the fall and is still growing here in the Spring. And in the middle of that God is bringing more and more people to Freshwater who are broken and looking for something more. But there has been a growing unrest in me over the past months. It has to do with Prayer. I sense the danger creeping in of thinking we are now too big to fail. We’re at the size where Christians can think, “Just hire someone to fix the problem” or “Just get a team of people together and it’ll happen.” I remember one Asian pastor’s comment about American churches, “I’m amazed at how much the American church can do WITHOUT God.” I’m not saying that’s us, but I am uneasy about that becoming us. In talking and praying with the staff, we feel led to call the church to a month-long time of prayer and fasting for BREAKTHROUGH. We sense that we need to seek God over the month of May and ask Him for BREAKTHROUGH in four areas of our lives over four weeks: • Week #1 Week of April 30th. Evangelism: That we would see Breakthrough in reaching our community for Christ. We also want to pray for Breakthrough for our partnerships with Summer Hartler in Germany and the Duecks in Senegal. • Week #2 Week of May 7th. Physical Healing: We just spoke on Christ our healer. James 5 is about physical healing. We’re going to spend time asking God for breakthrough in physical healing. • Week #3 Week of May 14th. Relational Healing: We all can point to broken relationships in marriages, in families, in friendships, in work, in school. We’re going to pray for breakthrough in relational healing • Week #4 Week of May 21st. Christ: We are going to fast and pray that God would take each of us deeper. Whether we are apathetic, complacent, distant, or running from Him, on fire, growing, or running towards Him, as a church we are going to pray that God brings Breakthrough in our relationship with Him. Is this scary? You bet. What if we don’t see breakthrough in any of this? There is a bunch of risk from a human perspective especially of asking and not seeing anything happen or God saying, “no”. But from a Divine perspective all I can see are guarantees and a boat-load of promises God gives that if we ask anything in Christ’s name and it is according to the will of the Father He will do it. I look at that list above and confidence grows, boldness grows, and faith grows. In fact, anticipation and excitement starts to swell because it’s not “if”, it’s “when”. And more than that, Acts demonstrates that Jesus moves and his Fire falls on us when His people humble themselves and pray and seek His face. We’re doomed to succeed!
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Fasting: So how will this fast work? • 4 Weeks: This fast is different in that we are stretching this over 4 consecutive weeks. Each week will have a different prayer theme. • 1 hour a week: We’re asking that at least once a week each of us fast from a MEAL or from MEDIA for 30 minutes and spend that time praying for the particular theme of that week. You can obviously do longer and do more. It’s about sacrifice and pulling away to focus on Christ and talking to Him AND hearing from Him. • The River: We also want to challenge you to come to The River (Wednesday nights 6:30pm) once during May to gather together as a church family and worship and pray. • Communion: We will be ending the Fast time on Sunday, May 28,, with communion. Please prayerfully consider this. If you call Freshwater home, I want to challenge you to be part of seeing God Breakthrough in our lives. Filled with Expectation Pastor Scott
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1. WHY FAST? Fasting is not required for followers of Jesus, it is assumed. Jesus said in Matthew 6:16, “When you fast...” Foster reminds us that Jesus doesn’t give the option, “if you fast,” or give the command, “fast!”. Rather, Jesus assumed there would be fasting. Indeed, He warns about the potential abuses within the realm of fasting. He makes it clear that “fasters” are not to be spotlighted as the “spiritual giants” in the group. He simply assumes fasting will be a part of the life of His followers. In Matthew 9:15, Jesus implies that there will be a time when His followers will fast–“When the bridegroom is taken away from them.” In other words, His disciples will fast after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension and before He returns again. Foster refers to this as “perhaps the most important statement in the New Testament on whether or not Christians should fast today.” Fasting is done “to the Lord.” The main purpose is to glorify God. Any other motive falls way behind this one. Fasting doesn’t show how spiritual you are. The goal in fasting is not to require God to act according to our specifications. Through the discipline of fasting we communicate to the Lord that we want to declare our dependence on Him. 2. WHY INVITE THE CHURCH TO FAST? This is an important question. Many who hear about fasting will initially react by saying, “I thought this was something to be done in private.” Jesus does warn about inappropriately advertising your own fasting. But the references to the corporate fasting of Israel in the Old Testament (Wallis, God’s Chosen Fast), and the suggestion that fasting was also practiced by churches in the New Testament (Acts 13-14 in particular) is drawn from their examples. We believe the invitation to fast and pray can appropriately be extended to the whole church community. Participation is between the individual and God, but the invitation is extended to everyone. In the past, we have all been drawn together as we pray and fast corporately. There is something that feels very right, rooting us in history as people of His church, as we pray and fast together. Although we are extending the invitation to everyone, we don’t want to have a sign-up list. Let’s not create “levels of spirituality” in our church family. We would be ignoring Jesus’ warnings in Matthew 6 if we decided to make a big deal about the physical effects of the fasting while we are doing it. This is simply an appropriate time to open ourselves corporately and individually to God. We need God’s hand, His guidance, His presence, His love, His empowerment to Breakthrough. This fast will be successful to the extent that it opens us to His movement and His leading in our church and in our lives. 3. WHAT IF I DON’T FEEL CALLED TO JOIN THIS FAST? Then, don’t fast. We mean it. If you don’t feel God’s leading, please don’t fast. It must be a fast the Lord “has chosen” for you as Isaiah writes in Isaiah 58:6. But there will be no pressure for you to participate...only an invitation. 4. WHAT ARE THE SCHEDULE AND THEMES FOR THIS TIME OF FASTING? We are planning to start the time of prayer and fasting on the morning of Sunday, April 30, and we will end it on the morning of Sunday, May 28, with communion. • Week #1 Week of April 30th. Evangelism: That we would see Breakthrough in reaching our community for Christ. We also want to pray for Breakthrough for our partnerships with Summer Hartler in Germany and the Duecks in Senegal. 4
• Week #2 Week of May 7th. Physical Healing: We just spoke on Christ our healer. James 5 is about physical healing. We’re going to spend time asking God for breakthrough in physical healing. • Week #3 Week of May 14th. Relational Healing: We all can point to broken relationships in marriages, in families, in friendships, in work, in school. We’re going to pray for breakthrough in relational healing • Week #4 Week of May 21st. Christ: We are going to fast and pray that God would take each of us deeper. Whether we are apathetic, complacent, on fire, distant, or running from Him as a church we are going to pray that God brings Breakthrough in our relationship with Him. We anticipate a deep time of growth, conviction, and humility in these days. In fact, you may want to keep a journal each day of the experiences you have and what you sense the Lord may be saying to you. If you are fasting, you may want to use the times you would normally take for eating/media as a time to read Scripture, meditate, pray, and wait on the Lord. You may be surprised by the extra time in your week. Breakthrough Weekly Themes Week 1: Breakthrough in Evangelism: • Personally: Fast and pray for 1-2 people in your life that don’t follow Christ that they would encounter His words or His presence and have a Breakthrough in knowing Jesus. Pray also for opportunities to speak about Jesus. • Corporately: o VBS: Pray for Breakthrough during VBS for Children to respond to the gospel. Pray also for their parents who often are spiritually lost as well o Alpha: We are starting ALPHA in the fall. It’s a 12-week ministry for people who are spiritually searching. Pray that God would draw people to this ministry and that we would see people experience a Breakthrough as they choose to follow Christ. • Germany and Summer Hartzler: Christine’s salvation...she is the most closed off person to God that I have met. I’ve had people praying for her for several years now and I haven’t seen much movement in her...I am asking that you pray for miraculous signs and wonders in her life...and that she would have a Jesus encounter through dreams and visions. Her father died a few weeks ago, she is in a very sensitive place right now. • Senegal and the Duecks: Mamadou Mawiyatou Diallo conversion, a pular language teacher with a four year friendship with the C&MA field team. • Our Community, Senegal, and Germany: For dreams, visions, healings, deliverances among the Fula, the Germans, and those in our own community. Week 2: Breakthrough in Physical Healing: • Increase your faith in Jesus’ desire to heal and courage to step out in faith and ask • If you are sick (physically, emotionally, mentally) risk again and seek God if He would have you seek to be anointed and ask Him for healing • Ask the Lord to bring to your mind 1 or 2 people that He wants you to ask for Breakthrough in healing. • Pray that Freshwater would be known as a place where He, God, brings Breakthrough in physical healing. 5
Week 3: Breakthrough in Relational Healing: • Are you in a broken relationship (Marriage, Family, Friendship, Work)? Ask God to breakthrough and bring healing and reconciliation. • Ask the Lord to bring to your mind 1 or 2 people that He wants you to ask for breakthrough in healing. • Pray that Freshwater would be known as a place where He, God, brings Breakthrough in relational healing. • Are you stuck in bitterness and unforgiveness? Ask God to bring a Breakthrough of healing and grace so that you will choose to forgive and be healed. Week 4: Breakthrough in Relationship with Christ: • Nothing between: Ask God to breakthrough and destroy anything that is between you and Him. • Nothing between: Ask God to give you 1-2 people (maybe family or friends) and ask God to breakthrough and destroy anything that is between you and Him. • Pray for breakthrough at Freshwater so that we as a church are a Spirit Filled group of people where God’s presence and work takes us deeper into trust and faith and higher into victory and power. Pray that God would destroy anything that is between us and Him. • Summer Hartzler and the Duecks: Pray for breakthrough in their relationship with God and that he would destroy anything that is between them and Him. That He would take all of them deeper into trust and faith and higher into victory and power. 5. WHAT TYPE OF FASTS ARE THERE? According to Arthur Wallis (God’s Chosen Fast), there are three basic types of fasts. The normal fast is abstaining from all food but not water. The absolute fast is abstaining from both food and water. It should be noted that this is usually done over very short periods (hours or days) since the body relies heavily on fluids to function. The third fast is a partial fast. In the partial fast, the diet is restricted versus complete abstention from food. For instance, the fast might exclude all sweets and fats. Or, it may be limited to foods like fruits, vegetables, and yogurt. The partial fast may be especially meaningful to those who find it impossible or inconvenient to undertake a normal fast. For our 4-week fast, we are promoting something a bit different. We are challenging everyone to pick a MEAL(S) or MEDIA and at minimum set aside 1 hour a week to pray for the theme of that week. Obviously, if you feel led to do more go for it. The most important thing is to ask the Lord what He might lead you to do. But remember, fasting is far more than merely abstaining from food. It is a deeply spiritual discipline which combines our souls and our bodies. Fasts pursued with the wrong motives or with a critical spirit are not worth pursuing. 6. WHAT IF I HAVE A MEDICAL PROBLEM? Consult with your doctor before considering a fast from food, especially if you take any medications. God would not call us to consider a fast if it would endanger our long-term health. 7. CAN I FAST FOR MORE THAN ONE MEAL OR HOUR A WEEK? Sure! We’ve done 3-day fasts in the past. Let the Lord lead you toward what is right for you. If you have never fasted before, one or two days could be a real stretch and challenge. People fast for 3 days all the time and there 6
are examples of going much longer. It should be said, our faith is not measured by the number of days we fast. That’s why it’s so important to follow God’s lead on it. 8. WHAT ABOUT MY CHILDREN? This probably depends upon the age of your children. Younger children need food for proper development. Let them learn about fasting through your example. For older children, they may want to participate with you, but let it be their decision not yours. You may also want to replace a normal meal time with a time of family prayer and Bible reading. This will help your children understand Biblically why you are fasting. Consider having children join the fast by giving up something other than meals. An appropriate “sacrifice” might be snacks, a favorite TV show, video games, or something else that stimulates and draws our attention. Again, let them decide with your guidance. Being forced to fast is not what we want you or your children to feel. 9. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF FASTING? As Smith (Fasting A Neglected Discipline) writes, “it is a huge task to list the benefits of this discipline. [it is akin to] attempting to enumerate the benefits of medicine.” To be sure, there are some benefits. However, we must firmly fix in our minds that this is not a method to manipulate our God into giving us something. Fasting, like other spiritual disciplines, helps us to be conformed to the image of Christ. A few of the benefits of fasting can be: ~ Ability to more fervently pray ~ Better ability to hear from God regarding a decision or problem ~ Development of Christian humility ~ An appreciation for life and God ~ Uncovering hidden sins ~ Gaining control over bodily desires and appetites. There may be many other benefits too, but whatever benefits we receive will be from the hand of a loving and gracious God. 10. HOW CAN I PREPARE MYSELF FOR THE FAST? First, make your commitment to fasting. Your decisions should include: Type of Fast: Meal or Media Length of Fast: 1 hr/week, One day/week, One meal or show/week Next, on the physical side, if you are doing a meal or food fast for a day or more, you might want to remove tea and coffee (and all caffeine) from your diet about a week before the fast. Experience says that this is one of the most important steps. Caffeine withdrawals can cause headaches. You don’t want to deal with the headache pains in the middle of the fast. Also, begin to avoid rich foods from your diet. Drink plenty of water and juices to make sure your body is well hydrated before you begin the fast. Finally, on the spiritual side, begin a week ahead of time to prepare in your Bible study and prayer life. Ask with King David, “See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Ps. 139:24). 7
11. WHAT SHOULD I DO DURING THE FAST? In his booklet (7 steps to Successful Fasting and Prayer), Bill Bright suggests the following schedule for the person who is fasting and praying: Morning Begin the day with praise and worship. Read and meditate on God’s Word. Invite the Spirit to work in you and invite Him to use you in the world, your family, your church, your community and your country. Pray for God’s empowerment to do His will. Noon Return to prayer and God’s Word. Take a short prayer walk. Spend time in intercessory prayer for your community, national leaders, for the world’s unreached millions, for your family, or special needs. Evening Get alone for an unhurried time of seeking His face. Meet with others for prayer if possible. Avoid television or any other distraction that may dampen your spiritual focus. When possible begin and end the day on your knees with your spouse for a brief time of praise and thanksgiving to God. Some other helpful suggestions to consider if you are fasting from food for more than a day: ~ Limit your activity-both physical and social. ~ Exercise only moderately. Walk each day if convenient and comfortable. ~ Rest as much as your schedule will permit. ~ Prepare yourself for temporary mental discomforts, such as impatience, crankiness, and anxiety. ~ Expect some physical discomforts, especially on the second day. You may have fleeting hunger pains, dizziness, or the “blahs.” Physical annoyances may also include weakness tiredness, or sleeplessness. The first two days are usually the hardest. As you continue to fast, you will likely experience a sense of wellbeing both physically and spiritually. However, should you feel hunger pains, increase your liquid intake. 12. HOW SHOULD THE FAST END? We are planning to end the fast on Sunday, May 28, in the morning during our church services. We will take communion together to end our fast as the church body. If you have fasted from food for a lengthy period, more slowly toward heavier meals after the fast.
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RESOURCES ON FASTING Bright, Bill. 7 (Basic Steps to Successful Fasting and Prayer). Orlando, New Life Publications, 1995. This is an excellent little booklet on the why’s and how-to’s of fasting. You’ll find this readily available at local Christian bookstores. Foster, Richard J. (Celebration of Discipline) Ch. 2 - Fasting. New York: Harper San Francisco Publishers, 1978 This is the best short article about fasting. Foster gives an excellent overview and you will enjoy the rest of the book too! Mitchell, Curtis C. “The Practice of Fasting in the New Testament.” Bibliotheca Sacra 147 (1990): 455-469. Written at a scholarly level, this author discusses most New Testament texts on fasting. Smith, David R. Fasting: A Neglected Discipline. London: Hodder and Stroughton, 1954. A short book about the purposes, benefits, and methods of fasting. Wallis, Arthur. God’s Chosen Fast: A Spiritual and Practical Guide to Fasting. Fort Washington: Christian Literature Crusade, 1968. A clear and simply written book about fasting in the Bible, different kinds of fasting, and practical advice. IMPORTANT PASSAGES ON FASTING Fasting occurs 65 times in the Bible. Below are some of the most important passages from the Old and New Testaments. Deut. 9:9 Moses before receiving 10 Commandments 2 Sam. 12:16-23 David for child of Bathsheba Dan. 10:2-3 Daniel’s partial fast Joel 2:12 When returning to the Lord Matt. 4:1-11 Jesus’ 40 day fast Matt. 6:16-18 Jesus’ instructions on fasting Mark 2:18-22 Jesus questioned about fasting Acts 9:8-11 Paul’s fasting after conversion Acts 13:1-3 Fasting for commissioning of missionaries
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