Week two begins here:
February 10th - February 16th
While fasting, remember to combat any temptation with the scriptures and presence and power of God. When you're feeling tempted or hungry, turn and read Psalm 23 to refocus on His sufficiency and comfort. "Your rod and Your staff comfort me."
Day 8 - Februrary 10, 2023
The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Galatians 5:22-23, 26 (ESV)
A well maintained vine will produce an abundance of fruit. The soil must be tended and fertilized, there must be sufficient protection set up against bugs and pests from damaging the fruit or the vine. And the vine itself must be pruned and groomed so that no energy is wasted in the fruitless branches. The unproductive growths are cut off so that the fruit will grow big. And then, the fruit can be harvested for the benefit of others! In order for the fruits of the spirit to grow in our lives we must be willing to till and work the soil of our hearts by studying the Word and digging deep into His revelation. We must engage in surrounding ourselves with healthy strong brothers and sisters in the faith community of our local church that can help protect us from the enemy in prayer and encouragement. We must be willing to have our unhealthy and fruitless branches clipped by the great vine tender - God. When the right conditions are created for a healthy growth, the fruit will be desirable and it will be picked by those who need the nourishment. The Fruits of the Spirit are for the benefit of others. May our lives be overflowing sources of love for others to experience, marked with infectious joy, tangible peace and abundant patience, genuine kindness and goodness, unwavering faithfulness, unadulterated gentleness, and resolute self-control.
Father, prune the unproductive and unhealthy parts of my life and faith. Remove the dead branches so that the fruits of Your Spirit may grow in abundance. Help me to live a life that produces fruit that draws others into Your presence. Thank You for your correction and conviction. (Talk with your Father in Heaven) In Jesus Name, Amen.
Day 9 - February 11th, 2023
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7 (HCSB)
Rejoice! Rejoice over what the Lord has done in your life and make sure that other people see you rejoicing over the Lord! Let everyone know that Jesus is worth it! Let your heart be so grateful over His goodness and grace that you can't help but talk about it! In gratitude, we can bring anything...everything to Him in prayer. Every worry, every need, every fear, every tear, every joy, every blessing, every single request should be brought to the Lord in prayer. Our Father wants to hear His children and the desires of our hearts. As we become more like Him we need not worry about asking wrongly, because His Spirit will begin to guide our thoughts and desires. In every situation of life, He will send His Peace to guard our hearts and minds. He sends Jesus - the Prince of Peace. May we encounter Him in Peace when we feel overwhelmed. These verses remind us to Rejoice, pray, and receive His Peace.
Lord, I will rejoice in Your Name and in all of Your goodness, grace and mercy that You have shown me. May I never forget to rejoice in You. I thank You that I can come to You with everything on my heart. You hear my prayer, You answer prayer. In Your righteousness and grace You give blessings according to Your will. I will rest in the peace that You have provided. I lay down my need to understand because Your peace is beyond understanding. But I receive it anyway. (Lift a praise to the Lord) In Jesus Name, Amen
Day 10 - February 12th, 2023
Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth. Colossians 3:2 (NASB)
While you fast, you must always be aware of where your focus is. If our focus is on our flesh and its desires, we will fall. First we will fall to our cravings for food, or entertainment, or caffeine, but then, if left unchecked we will fall to our sinful desires. This season of fasting is to place the desires of the flesh under the authority of the satisfaction in the Spirit. We must set our minds, our desires, our feelings and our focus on the things of the Kingdom of God. The "things that are on earth" are the temptations of the enemy, they are the lusts of our senses. The lusts of our senses function as a counterfeit to the true satisfaction that is found in His Fullness. I want my life to be satisfied only in Him.
Jehovah Jirah, You are enough. You are the God who provides for all of my needs. You are a Father who loves me, His child and You lovingly take care of me. I want my focus and my attention to be elevated to be fixed on You instead of lesser things. Remove the short-sightedness from my faith and from my relationship with You. I want to see and experience the "things that are above". Help me to have discernment on what is from above and what is just a distraction from below. Thank you Lord. (Lift your supplications to Him) In Jesus Name, Amen
Day 11 - February 13, 2023
Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Ephesians 5:15-16 (ESV)
Consider the paths that you walk. This scripture isn't just talking about where you get your step count on your pedometer. The word walk is to suggest the habits that you are given to. Look carefully at your daily habits. Ask yourself: Are there things in my life that are wasting time - time that would be better spent in prayer or study of the scripture? Have I created an idol out of one of my habits?
If you are not sure about whether you are walking in wisdom or in folly, remember that the Word says, "If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you." (James 1:5) Let us seek the wisdom of God so that we can redeem the time in these evil days. Let no moment be wasted because we have wandered from His Word or His Grace.
Holy Spirit, open my eyes to Your wisdom. Reveal the paths You would have me walk so that I may be wise in Your sight. Help me to develop healthy habits of dwelling in Your presence and sharing the Gospel of the Kingdom with those around me. Show me the unwise habits and help me to repent from continuing in them. I open my heart, and my mind, and my spirit to Your correction and encouragement. (Talk and listen to your Father in Heaven) In Jesus Name, Amen.
Day 12 - February 14, 2023
“Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “Return to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, weeping and mourning; And rend your heart and not your garments.” Now return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness And relenting of evil. Joel 2:12-13 NASB1995
Many times in scripture we read of people tearing their cloaks or garments in anguish, mourning, or anger. The word "Rend" means to tear or break apart violently. Here in Joel, the Lord declares that we are to rend our hearts instead of our garments. He's saying that our hearts should be broken for those who have gone astray; those who do not know God. Return to Him with all our heart because He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love. It's interesting that He says "return to Me with all your heart" and then He says our hearts should be rent over having gone astray. God can do more with our broken hearts than He can with a whole unmoved, hard and unrepentant heart. Also, God is not instructing us to return to Him all sad a mopey. He wants us to be burdened with a heart for the lost, the wandering, the oppressed so that we are so moved for their souls that we mourn their absence, we weep for them to know the Lord, we fast for their breakthrough. We fast for a deeper revelation of who He is and how He loves.
Father God, I return to You with my whole heart. Show me what it looks like to be burdened for Your people. Rend my heart to be used by You for Your will and Your purposes. May this season of fasting help to replace my heart with Yours. Break my heart for the things that break Your heart. (Submit yourself to Him) In Jesus Name, Amen.
Day 13 - February 15, 2023
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them inthe name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 ESV
The Great Commission is a pretty well known piece of scripture. It is essentially the marching orders, the purpose, the focus, and summation of the activity in our walk of faith. Many of us know the scripture but when the opportunity presents itself to walk it out, we freeze; we don't know how to engage or what to say. We stop in fear. We all know the "Go therefore" part but do we pay enough attention to the verses around it. Jesus starts this message with saying that He has received ALL authority in Heaven and on Earth has been given to Him. All authority! - Meaning that there is no other who has any authority. After establishing that He is the one with ALL authority, He tells us to make disciples as we go along our way - as we live our lives. Make disciples at work, at the grocery store, at the restaurant, at home, in our communities - as we go along. But He assures us that in our Go-ing, He is with us...always. We will never enter an opportunity to share the Gospel without Him being present and with His presence, He brings All authority. So Go and make disciples with the confidence that Jesus is with you and leading with All Authority.
Almighty God, thank You for Your Word. I know that it is always good. Bless the lives of those who pursued my heart and shared the Gospel with me. Your Good News is amazing and I want everyone to know the freedom I have found in You. Help me to remember that I am not alone in the Great Commission that You have given us. Remove any spirit of fear that would hold me back from moving and speaking to others about Jesus. You are with me to the end of the age. (Pray blessings over other people in your life) In Jesus Name, Amen.
Day 14 - February 16th, 2023
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV
What is the Will of God? That you would experience the Joy of the Lord in your deepest being, that you would be in constant communication with your Father in Heaven, and that your life would be filled with Gratitude for all the blessings He has given -- ALL this despite whatever your current circumstances may look like. When we have been filled with the Joy of the Lord, we have tasted and seen that He is good and nothing else will satisfy like He does. It doesn't mean we don't experience sadness or pain, but that the sadness and pain do NOT define us or dominate us. Joy and gratitude are powerful forces in your faith. Couple that with praying without ceasing which is to day that we are in consistent communication - intimacy - with our Father in Heaven and you have experienced the Will of God for your life. There's nothing really to DO in order to be in the Will of God, rather we get to BE with Him. All the doing comes from the overflow of BEING in His Will.
Lord, I want to BE with You. May Joy, Intimacy, and Gratitude be a greater and greater expression in my life and faith. Help me to stop DOING before BEING with You. I want to be in Your Will for my life. (Pray through what you are grateful for and rejoice) In Jesus Name, Amen.
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