the reluctant leader

Fasting FAQs

Those who know me know that I hate fasting, but I do it anyway.

For as long as I can remember, our church in Manila has started the year with a week of prayer, fasting, and consecration. For me, that week is always the best of times and the worst of times. Looking back, I have to admit that I probably instituted a church-wide week of fasting because that is the only way I could force myself to participate in that spiritual discipline. Left to myself, I would rather visit Five Guys three times a day than skip meals and pray three times a day. But, my church community makes me a better Christian.

Today is day III of our 2013 week of prayer, fasting, and consecration. Many Every Nation churches around the world are having morning, noon, and evening prayer meetings this week. I am already hearing twitter reports of answered prayer and breakthrough, as Every Nation people from London to Manila to Nashville are humbling themselves and getting hungry (for God!).

I am also hearing some questions. Rather than attempting to make up answers myself, I will simply refer you to one of the best fasting cites available, which includes the following info:

• Why fast
• How to fast safely
• How long
• How to prepare 
• How to make your spiritual experience the best it can be
• What physical benefits to expect
• How to finish your fast

I hope that helps as you seek God during this week of fasting, prayer, and consecration.

 

 

 

I Hate Fasting But I Do it Anyway, Here's Why...

When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their REWARD in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will REWARD you. --Jesus in Matthew 6

Jesus said that our heavenly Father rewards fasting. Following are seven rewards of fasting:

1. Fasting turns back God’s wrath and judgment.
Moses recorded that God was angry enough to destroy Aaron and the children of Israel because of their gold cow idol (Dt 9:18-20). But, as we know, God’s wrath was turned back after Moses fasted and prayed. There has been much said and written the past few years about God’s wrath and judgment on different nations. I’m convinced that Christians can turn back God’s judgment through fasting and prayer. Of course that will never happen unless God’s people get more concerned about the next generation than their next meal

2. Fasting releases prophetic strategies for victory.
The Moabites, Amonites, and several other hostile nations were arrayed against Israel. (See 2 Chr 20:1-30.) King Jehoshaphat called for a fast. You know you are in a desperate situation when a guy nicknamed J-PHAT calls for a fast. During the fast, a prophetic word was given that laid out God’s strategy for their battle. “No swords. No shields. No spears. Get your tambourines ready, we’re going to war!” I’m sure there were some battle-hardened warriors who thought that word was way off. After all, “We’ve never fought a battle like that before.” As always, God knew best. If we are willing to skip a few meals, we may receive prophetic strategies to influence our cities for God’s glory. They may be new and untried strategies, but if they are from God, we can be confident they will work.

3. Fasting activates people and provision for God’s work.
Nehemiah’s building project was preceded by corporate fasting. Would it have been as successful without the fasting? I don’t think so. In 1984, God opened the door for our fledgling Manila church to have its own (rented) building in Manila’s crowded University-Belt as we fasted and prayed.  Each time our church has expanded to a new building to own or rent, a vital part of our fund-raising strategy has been prayer and fasting.

4. Fasting releases wisdom and favor.
Daniel and his friends went on a partial fast (vegetables and water only). At the end of the fast, they were compared with the rest of the young men of Babylon. The results are recorded in Daniel 1:20. In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom. Would you like to be ten times better than your competitors? Just lay off the pizza for a few days and seek God wholeheartedly.

5. Fasting clarifies and redirects callings and ministries.
Paul, Barnabas, and a few other Antioch church leaders were me eting together, and while they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said: set apart for me Barnabas . . . (Acts 13:1-3). While they were fasting, the Holy Spirit spoke. Would He have spoken this new direction even if they had not fasted? Probably. The real question is: Would they have been sensitive enough to hear the Holy Spirit speak if they had not fasted? Maybe. Maybe not. Are you seeking God for a new direction in your life or ministry? Good time to fast.

6. Fasting breaks demonic strongholds.
On one occasion, the disciples unsuccessfully attempted to cast out a demon. When they asked Jesus why they had failed, He responded:  this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting (Matt 17:21). This seems to indicate that there are certain demonic situations that, for one reason or another, can only be defeated through fasting. Isaiah said that true fasting will loose chains . . . untie the cords of yoke . . . set the oppressed free and break every yoke (Is 58:6). Have you ever encountered a stubborn demonic situation? Maybe it’s the kind that only goes out by prayer and fasting.

7. Fasting increases spiritual power.
Luke records that Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit and that He was led by the Spirit.  After His forty day fast, He returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit (Lk 4:1,14). How many Christians do you know who are full of the Spirit and led by the Spirit, but do not walk in the power of the Spirit? Need more power? Spiritual power is one of the rewards of fasting.

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This blog was originally an article called "Freedom from the Stomach God" written for Evangelicals Today magazine. A few years ago I wrote several fasting blogs on my "accidental missionary" site. The first was called "I Hate Fasting."

(Note: We encourage only healthy adults to fast. If you are pregnant or nursing, you should not fast. If you have any medical condition, you should check with your doctor before fasting.)

Ignoring God's Word & Expecting a Miracle?

I read something in Jeremiah 37 this morning that sounded eerily contemporary. It also explained what is wrong with many church people today.

² Neither he (King Zedekiah) nor his attendants nor the people of the land paid any attention to the words the LORD had spoken through Jeremiah the prophet.

None of these guys paid any attention to what the prophet preached. Not the king. Not his attendants. Not the average people. No one. They all ignored God's word. But...

 ³ King Zedekiah, however, sent Jehukal son of Shelemiah with the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to Jeremiah the prophet with this message: “Please pray to the LORD our God for us.”

They completely ignored the word of God, then they asked for special prayer. Happens in churches everyday all over the world. People ignore the sermon then get in the prayer line for a special touch from the "man of God." We don't listen to or obey the Word, yet we expect some magical prayer to fix our problems that result from ignoring the Word.

And we wonder why our prayers aren't answered.

I Hate Fasting

I don’t remember which year we started, or whose ideas it was (probably Manny Carlos – definitely not mine), but as long as I can remember my home church in Manila has started each year with a week of prayer, fasting and consecration.

This week is both my favorite and least favorite week of the year - because I hate fasting but I love the results of fasting.

Over the years we have heard countless testimonies of salvation, healing, financial provision, freedom from addictions, business turnarounds, job promotions, clear direction, restored relationships,…  that result from answered prayers during our week of consecration. 

I know 2011 will be no different because God still hears and answers prayer.

So this week at Every Nation Nashville we are doing a Joel 1:14… Declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the Lord your God and cry out to the Lord.

Whether you are eating or not, if you are in the Nashville area, you are invited to pray with us at the Every Nation office daily from 8-9, 12-1 and 4-5.

Revival or Discipleship?

When I was new in ministry I was always asking God for revival. I had no idea what revival looked like, but since everyone around me wanted it, I joined the chorus and cried out for that elusive pot of spiritual gold at the end of the rainbow - REVIVAL.

I don't really do that much any more. I guess over the years, I just got too busy making disciples, developing leaders, planting churches and doing cross-cultural mission work. Plus, I think much of what we call revival today is just plain weird.   

I’m all for prayer, but lots of church people spend so much time in prayer meetings that they have completely lost touch with the needs of non-religious people. And, they tend to speak a strange language that only prophets and intercessors can interpret.

That’s not how Jesus did life. He certainly prayed, but he also engaged irreligious unspiritual people (“tax collectors and sinners”) on their turf and in their language, not in a religious meeting using a hyper-religious language.

Suggestion: along with praying for revival maybe we should also consider doing what he already told us to do: GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES. 

Struggling with My Inner-Martha

Notes from my Moleskine… Reading Luke 10:38-42 this morning. We all know the story. Most of us have lived it far too many times.

Martha was distracted; Mary was focused.
Martha was upset; Mary was listening.
Martha chose to worry; Mary chose the better way.

I don’t know about you, but I still struggle with my inner-Martha, who gets distracted by so many trivial things that don’t really matter.

Here’s what Jesus said about the Mary/Martha situation: “few things are needed – indeed only one.” (LK10:42)

I think I do lots of things that aren’t really needed and that don’t really matter.

Resolved: From now own, I only want to do the things that are needed.

The Real Road to Holiness

Holiness. What does that even mean?

To some, holiness means abstaining from intoxicants, not listening to Rock & Roll music, staying off nasty websites and spending lots of time in church meetings.

So, we grit our teeth and try our best to live holy lives. But we never really feel holy. Why? Because maybe we've completely missed the point. Maybe holiness is not totally about what we do or what we don't do. Maybe holiness is much deeper than external disciplined behavior.

While reading Leviticus on my recent Manila to Tokyo flight, I kept running into this phrase:

"I am the Lord, who makes you holy"  (Lev 21:23)

This concept is all over Leviticus, more times than I cared to count. After reading "I am the Lord who makes you holy" over and over and over and over - I think I finally got the point.

- We can't make ourselves holy, only God can make a us holy.

- We are holy because of what He does for us, not because of what we do for him.

- Holiness comes from God to people, not from people to God.

In your quest to live holy, don't forget the simple fact that He is the Lord and He makes you holy. You are not the Lord and you can't make yourself holy.

The Supernatural

Great time of prayer and strategic planning with our Middle East leaders in Dubai this week. God is doing amazing things in this region, but for security reasons, I can’t blog about them and I can’t post pictures.

But I can blog about Jim Laffoon’s message to our leaders. Here are my quick notes…

Every leader, every pastor, every minister must deal with the work, the weight and the war of the ministry.

1. The WORK of the ministry includes making disciples, equipping ministers, empowering leaders and teaching the Word. This is the easy part.

2. The WEIGHT of the ministry includes vision, provision and decisions. While we can take a vacation from the work of the ministry, the weight of the ministry tends to stay with us and weigh us down. As ministry grows, the weight gets heaver.

3. The WAR of the ministry is the supernatural demonic side of things. The devil is real and he prowls around looking for those he can devour through temptation, accusation and deception.

Most ministry training covers the first two. But most ministry failures are because of number 3. Like it or not, we are all in a spiritual battle, all the time. Therefore, we must not only master strategic leadership principles, we must put on the armor of God and learn to fight and win spiritual battles through prayer, fasting and (the shield of) faith. 

Devotion

Preaching tomorrow at Bethel-Franklin.

Random notes for tomorrow:
-Devotion is not about getting God to like us more.
-Devotion is not about punching our religious time-clock.
-Devotion is not about winning God's favor.
-Devotion is not about impressing our friends and family with our spirituality.
-Devotion is a heart RESPONSE to who God is and to what He has done for us.
-The more we see, hear and understand God, the more devoted our hearts will be.

TOPIC: Devotion
TEXT: Isaiah 6

-Isaiah saw God, who is holy to the third degree (holy, holy, holy) and he realized he was a mess to the third degree. He repented.

-God cleansed him. With a burning coal. On his lips. Ouch. Repentance is often painful. 

-God called him. Interesting that Isaiah understood and responded to God's call when his "self-esteem" was at its all-time lowest point. The lower we go, in our own eyes as compared to God's greatness, this greater our understanding our our calling. As long as we think we are pretty good people, God will not call or use us for his purpose. Humility is the starting point...

More at Bethel-Franklin tomorrow.

How to Dethrone the Stomach god

Here’s what I was thinking and blogging about this time last year. Thought it was worth re-posting with a bit of editing...

Food is a powerful force. What, when and how much we eat can be a deadly and spiritual decision. Consider this:
- The first commandment was about food.
- The first temptation was about food.
- The first sin was about food.

Food and appetite – what we do with both is kinda important.
 
I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.
Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.
 (Phil 3:19, 20)

Could this "their god is their stomach" comment somehow be connected to the "enemy of the cross" idea? I’m afraid so.

I don’t want to be an enemy of the cross, so I’m intentionally dethroning the stomach god this week. And the process is brutal. I feel like if I drink any more water, I'll grow gills, and scales.

I dethrone the stomach god at the beginning of every year - but somehow he manages to make a comeback - usually during holidays.

How do I keep him off the throne? Maybe the cross is the key. Gotta kill that false stomach god, before he gets too big.