A Call to Prayer and Fasting
So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer. Ezra 8:23
The leaders of my church have called the congregation to prayer and fasting. We are at a crossroads: a large portion of our congregation is being sent out to start a church in another location. This is not a split over differences. This is a church splitting its seams! We decided against building a mega-church. We know God is orchestrating this. We also know both groups are vulnerable and need prayer—for protection from attacks of the Evil One, and also for guidance.
Some people define fasting as abstaining from anything that hinders our communication with God, as in doing without something we love or practicing self-denial. But that type of fasting can be just a watered down version of biblical fasting. Webster’s dictionary defines fasting as “abstaining from food (but not from water) for religious discipline; a fast is a day reserved by ecclesiastical authority for fasting.”
Health reasons may prevent some people from doing a regular fast, and they may have to fast in an abbreviated way. But doubt and fear should not determine the length of a fast. If God has called us to fast, He will sustain us.
The leaders of my church did not just ask us to abstain from food; they also asked us to pray. I’ve fasted several times. Sometimes I’ve kept myself very busy so I could concentrate on getting through the fast without giving in to my body’s insistent cries. I set aside time to pray, but my prayers were brief. This time will be different. I”ll set aside several times to pray. Some people in my church won’t be able to pray during the day at work, but we can all pray at mealtime.
I believe God will hear our prayers and answer us as he answered Ezra who “proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance.” Verse 23 says God answered their prayer (Ezra 8:21-23).
Is God calling you to fast and pray for protection, guidance, or something else? Do you believe He will hear and answer your prayers?
DIG DEEPER:
2 Samuel 12:16, Daniel 9:3, and Esther 4:3 tell us about people who fasted and prayed. Who were they and why did they fast?
Read Matthew 6:16-18. What instructions does Jesus give the disciples about fasting? What point is He making?
Read Joel 1:1-14. Why did Joel declare a fast? Do his circumstances remind you of what has happened recently in the USA? (Farmlands have been destroyed by tornadoes, floods, and drought. Forests have been devoured by fires. Citrus crops have been destroyed by hurricanes. People have been forced to throw away the food in their refrigerators because of power outages caused by snowstorms.) What might God saying through these circumstances?
Read Matthew 4:1-11 and Exodus 34:28. Why did God call these two people to forty day fasts?
Nancy J. Baker